24 hours ago, October 18th 2017…

The desert air was unusually cold as it blew past them when they looked around, completely sure that they heard footsteps but not sure as to whose footsteps they were.

"This is getting eerie… I know we heard screaming out here and saw the person being dragged away, now it's completely silent." Amanda responded as her left hand was in Finn's right hand, a flashlight in her right hand as they looked around.

Finn kept his girlfriend close to him, thinking that whoever was out here earlier could still be.

As he was about to speak though, they heard someone not too far away.

But turning around only revealed to them that it was Seth.

"Why are you two out here?" Seth asked.

"We heard two people screaming, then saw the taller one out of the two dragging the smaller one away." Finn explained.

"Why didn't you call the cops?" Seth asked.

"We went to the police station and the one behind the desk gave us attitude, then told us that unless it's been 48 hours, they can't do anything." Amanda responded.

"I never really understood waiting that long to find someone who's gotten kidnapped." Finn replied before they saw Aestrid, Dianne and Immy.

"I thought I told you three to stay back at the hotel!" Amanda responded.

"Not when we think we know who you heard being taken." Dianne replied, holding what Amanda recognised as Immy's smaller smartphone. "Max Caulfield. Remember, the photography student from Oregon? She's not answered any texts since coincidentally about a half hour before you came out with hearing the commotion and any calls to her go straight to voicemail."

"Why would someone take her? She's just a kid…" Amanda replied, thinking that Max wasn't any older than a teenager.

"Not quite. Like you she's a bit older than she looks, early 20s I think. Graduated from fancy ol' Blackwell Academy back in the summer of 2014. I was in the process of looking to see if anyone possibly related to her past could be in the area before my phone was suddenly nicked from me while talking about it." Immy explained, glancing up at Dianne.

Dianne handed it back to Immy, who smiled slightly.

"That's better." Immy responded.

Amanda shined the flashlight towards a cactus… and nearly screamed when they saw blood.

"Now that's a scene of struggle if I ever saw one." Aestrid spoke as she jogged towards the horrific scene, where there was a single streak of blood across the sand with several smaller droplets around it. She then crouched down as she saw something shiny in the sand, carefully pinching the small item between her fingers and picking it up.

If the blood hadn't been shocking enough, the mostly empty needle was. Immy stepped over and took it into her right hand, turning it and examining it. "I think we just narrowed down who took her." She spoke, looking up towards Amanda.

"Son of a bitch got out of prison…" Amanda responded quietly, Finn lightly rubbing her back.

"Mark Jefferson, big court case in October of 2013. Despite 30 girls being victims and one of them dying in the process, the bastard somehow managed to get off with 6 years and as many months." Immy lowered the needle, stepping away from the blood. "It hasn't been his full sentence yet. But two months ago he got the unfortunate luxury of parole."

"He should've been sent to death row!" Amanda growled, exposing a needle scar on the left side of her neck and the others going wide eyed. "I was 18 when he snuck up on me… had it not been for him hearing someone and running off…" She responded, trailing off as Finn held her.

"Cops blew it off back then?" Immy asked.

"Anytime they hear the words wrestler and drugged, they assume it's an overdose. They didn't even bother looking further into it, I described to them what Jefferson looked like too." Amanda explained, Finn getting her to look at him.

"Might be why they came so quick to it when he resurfaced in Arcadia Bay. Didn't do much for you but maybe it did some good for them, stopped there being any more kidnappings." Finn replied.

"Until he broke out." Amanda responded, the group heading back to the hotel…

Present time, October 19th 2017…

Kurt found himself concerned when Amanda was drinking a Redbull and shaking… and he walked over to her, Amanda looking at him.

"Was the arena checked thoroughly?" Amanda asked.

"It was. Mandy, if Jefferson's out, I don't think he'll go looking for you." Kurt responded.

"Kurt, I still remember that malicious look in his eyes… I was just going about my life that night and he was looking at me like an animal who had caught their prey. He's got Max and the police aren't doing anything, what if he kills her?!" Amanda replied, Kurt getting her to sit down.

"We'll find him before he does that, Mandy. Aestrid told me she's got one of her little gang working on a few things, trying to wiggle into Jefferson's accounts to see if there's anything to help. I don't know, maybe a transaction renting an apartment in the area or buying a new camera?" Kurt responded, sitting down beside her as he explained what was being done.

"After what happened, I didn't sleep too much. I started keeping a switchblade under the pillow and a gun under the bed. What did finally reassure me was keeping a picture nearby of me and Sachael from when we were kids." Amanda replied.

"Memories that comforted you. I can only hope that… somehow Max is doing the same, wherever she is." Kurt responded.

"I hope so too." Amanda replied before they hugged for a few seconds and she left.

When she found Finn, he was walking out of Vince's office and it was clear that he was furious at the chairman.

"He's not taking this seriously…" Amanda responded as they kissed and held each other.

"'Oh, girls go missing all the time, she'll turn up.' Like hell she will, if blood and a needle isn't enough to convince him I don't know what is." Finn replied, still feeling the last few seconds of his anger from the office, though as usual it faded relatively quickly when he was around Amanda.

"If I wasn't sure that I'd get fired, I'd slap the old bastard!" Amanda responded, Finn knowing that Vince had been giving her hell lately.

"Maybe a girl's life is worth more than a career but let's not get too drastic yet. At least not before we've tried all the less violent options beforehand." Finn replied as he glanced out of the window across the city around them.

He had a feeling that Jefferson was hiding Max somewhere close.