Fan Fic 2
Family Affair
Chapter 1
"Come on Michelle. We're going to be late." Danny yelled up the stairs to his wife while putting on his bow tie.
"Alright. I'm coming!" Michelle yelled back. She immediately walked down the stairs in a beautiful long-flowing, black gown. Danny couldn't take his eyes off of her as her dress sparkled in the light.
"Wow, honey. You look incredible. Every woman at the party should be jealous once you walk into the room." Danny held Michelle's hand as they headed for the doorway.
"Thanks, Danny. You're so sweet. Now, you called the babysitter right? And she said she would be here in a few minutes? Michelle tried to stay calm even though she felt rushed.
Just as she said those words, they heard a knock at the door. "Hello, Susie. Thanks for babysitting tonight even though it was such short notice." Michelle told her as she entered the house.
"Oh, it's no problem. I'm happy to do it anytime. I love Robbie. He's a great kid."
As Danny tried to push Michelle out the door, she yelled back instructions to Susie. "She knows what she's doing, Michelle. Now let's go. We're already gonna be late." Danny quickly shut the door and he and his wife headed off to his campaign party at Towers.
Ten minutes into the party, Danny and Michelle finally arrived. "There you are. Where have you been? The guests have been waiting anxiously for your arrival." Bill asked them while in his campaign-manager persona.
"Look who finally showed up. Springfield's future Mayor and future first lady; Mr. Danny Santos and Mrs. Michelle Bauer-Santos." The crowd began to clap and cheer.
"Thank you everyone for coming. I appreciate everyone's support throughout the campaign, and I hope you'll continue your support by voting for me on Election Day." Danny stood up in front of the crowd and began to give his speech. Amongst his many supporters were many familiar faces. Cassie and Edmund, Tony, Eden, Ed, Rick and Mel were all there to be by his side.
Danny continued to speak. "You know, there are many people in this town who still think of me as a mobster. To be honest, I don't blame them. I have done things in my past that I'm not proud of. But today I'm a changed man and I'm prepared to turn Springfield as well as Fifth Street into decent, crime-free areas. I think I owe everyone here a chance to wipe the slate clean and start fresh. So, if I become elected Mayor I will do my best to clean up our streets and make Springfield a town that we can all be more proud of. Thank you."
The screams and the applause from the crowd made the room feel like it was shaking and the sounds echoed off the walls.
Meanwhile, back at the Santos house, the babysitter had just put Robbie to bed and was ready to sit down when she heard a noise. Not thinking anything of it, Susie walked into the living room and sat down on the couch with her book.
But about a few minutes later, Susie heard the noise again. This time it was louder and Susie thought it sounded like glass breaking.
She immediately ran upstairs to check on Robbie. Thinking he might have fallen on the way to the bathroom, Susie headed straight there. But he wasn't in there. She then opened the door to Robbie's room and noticed there was no lump in the bed. Then she turned on the light. As soon as she looked over at his bed, she knew he was gone.
Chapter 2
Danny was bombarded with many supporters wanting to shake his hand and say thank you. Rick and Mel were two of them.
"Danny, look. I know we haven't always seen eye to eye on certain things. But I want you to know that I will support you throughout this campaign. I'm glad to have you as a brother-in-law and I hope we can get to know each other even better." Rick assured Danny as he gave him a manly hug.
"Thanks Rick. I really appreciate it. I want you to know that I will make you proud not just as a Mayor but as a brother-in-law." Danny smiled at Rick and Mel and they walked back over to the rest of the crowd.
About a minute later, one of the restaurant employees walked up to Danny to tell him he had a phone call. Danny immediately took the phone from the waiter and said hello into the receiver.
"Oh my god....Are you sure? Okay. Stay calm. Call the police...Okay. We'll be right over." Danny handed the phone back to the young man and ran off to find Michelle.
When she saw the horrid look on her husband's face, Michelle knew something was wrong. "Danny, honey. What's going on? Who was on the phone?"
"It was Susie. Robbie....Robbie...Robbie." Danny tried to stay calm but he couldn't. His tough-guy personality was hidden away as his caring-father persona began to show through.
"What, what about Robbie?" Michelle asked worriedly.
"He's gone. The babysitter can't find him anywhere. Someone has taken our little boy." Without saying another word the two of them headed for the exit.
Suddenly, Bill saw them leave and ran up to them. "Where are you guys going? You can't leave now."
"It's Robbie. Someone has kidnapped him." Before Bill could reply, the elevator doors shut and Danny and Michelle disappeared.
Chapter 3
About ten minutes later, Michelle and Danny finally arrived back home. They quickly flew open the front door and ran upstairs to find the babysitter.
"Susie, Susie. What happened? Where's Robbie?" Michelle asked as she tried to keep her balance. Her whole world was closing in on her, a little bit at a time, and nothing could prepare her for what was ahead. If it wasn't for her husband standing beside her, Michelle would have fallen right over.
"Mr. and Mrs. Santos, what I told you on the phone is pretty much what happened. I put Robbie to bed at his normal time, 8:00, and went back into the living room. About a couple minutes later I heard a noise. Then it stopped. A minute later I heard it again. I quickly ran upstairs to check on Robbie. And when I got up there, I entered his bedroom and noticed he was gone." Danny and Michelle could tell how hard this was for Susie. So they began to comfort her.
"Come on Susie, why don't we go into the living room and sit down. Michelle, I need you to call Frank now and cue him in on what's happened." Danny led Susie into the living room while Michelle grabbed the phone to call Frank.
She picked up the receiver. "Hello...I need to speak to Chief Frank Cooper...Tell him it's an emergency....Our son has been kidnapped." Five seconds later, Frank was on the other line ready to take Michelle's call.
"Michelle, the officer here just told me you think Robbie has been kidnapped. When did this happen? How do you know it was a kidnapping?" Frank, being the brilliant cop that he is, already began asking questions.
"Frank, it happened about 15 minutes ago. The babysitter was here when it happened. And to answer your other question, he must have been kidnapped, because he wouldn't be anywhere else." Michelle began to raise her voice as if that would help her case.
"Alright, stay there. I'll be right over." Michelle hung up the phone and walked over to Danny and Susie who were sitting on the couch.
"How's she doing?" Michelle asked her husband worriedly.
"Not well. She thinks this whole thing was her fault. And she feels horrible about it. I try to reassure her that she's not the one to blame for this, but she doesn't want to hear about it." Danny puts his arm around Susie trying to comfort her. She just puts her head against his shoulder and begins to sob.
Minutes later, Frank finally arrives at the house. Danny gets up from the sofa and heads into the foyer to meet Frank.
"Why don't we start from the beginning? But first let's sit down so we can get everyone's stories straight." They all walked into the living room and sat down. Danny then began to loosen his bow-tie and shirt collar, which at this point, was almost strangling him.
"Okay, where were you guys when you first heard of Robbie's disappearance?
Danny began to explain to Frank how he was giving a campaign speech at Towers and they were running late. He finished with the moment he got a call from Susie. Frank studied Danny as he spit out every word, trying to put the pieces together.
"Now Danny, I hate to ask this question. But do you have any idea of who could have taken your son? Maybe somebody in the mob who still has a grudge against you?" Frank put on his serious face.
"I don't know. I mean there were a lot of families furious with me for turning them into the Feds. But that was a long time ago. Why would they plan revenge now, after all this time? Danny stood up and began running his fingers through his slick-backed hair.
"Frank, I immediately thought it could have been somebody from the mob too. But like Danny said, it's been a very long time since he ratted them out. If they were going to take revenge, they would have put out a hit on Danny as soon as they got word of Danny's betrayal." Michelle tried to convince Frank.
"Well, as much as you want to believe that that is true, mobsters usually hold grudges for years and they never really let it go. I've been on the force for 15 years and during those years I've come across my share of mobsters and believe me none of them had any thoughts of forgiving people." Although he didn't come out and say it, Frank knew in his mind that this was probably a mob hit and that Danny and Michelle were in real danger. But Frank knew better than to just go on his hunches.
Danny walked over towards Michelle and put his arm around her shoulders. After hearing Frank's words on the mob, Danny had to agree with him.
"Michelle, Frank's right. When the mob is double-crossed, no matter how long ago it was, they never stop trying to get revenge. And you know the families have had a vendetta against me for a long time. I think we need to go with the assumption that Robbie was taken by one of the families. Michelle, I know you don't want to believe it, but we have to be realistic here." Danny tried to comfort Michelle but his efforts failed.
Michelle, ready to shed tears, her mascara already falling down her clean, blemish-free face, turned around and headed up the stairs. Frank and Danny looked at each other and then turned to face Michelle. Danny immediately ran after her.
But not before Frank interjected: "Danny, I will make sure that Robbie is returned to you safe and sound. I've dealt with mobsters before and I know how to handle guys like them. I promise you that we will find your son. I am going to head back to the station now to continue this investigation. I will call you when I find out anything." Frank walked to the front door as Danny rushed off to find Michelle upstairs.
"Thanks Frank. I know you will do everything you can to find him."