Disclaimer: Here it is, my little rhyme: please don't sue cos they're not mine :P

Thank-you to all who reviewed. It is so nice to know that the effort I put in is appreciated.


Chapter Two

Chele and Charlie sat in the kitchen, both drinking ice tea. Chele was also holding an ice pack to the back of her head where she hit it. She had given Charlie a tour of the house and it was huge for a one storey home. There were three bedrooms, two dining rooms, a massive living room, a bathroom Charlie described as hotel-esque, and a study with two computers and an entire wall of shelves occupied by books on every subject. Also, the kitchen was equipped with just about every appliance known to man. Charlie did a quick mental calculation and came to the conclusion hat the household used up more energy in a week than Don's entire office building.

"Okay," started Charlie. "We've talked about the weather, you've shown me around the place and we've had lunch. Why don't you tell me about yourself?"

"Uh, well, I live here with my twelve-year-old brother, Danny. He's seven years younger than me. I finished uni a couple years ago – I've got a law degree, but I majored in math as well."

"Wait," Charlie looked confused. "You said your brother is seven years younger than you. That would make you nineteen this year. If you finished uni a couple years ago, that would make you-"

"Sixteen when I graduated."

"Wow," Charlie didn't have time to say any more, because at that moment the phone started ringing. Chele went into the next room to grab the cordless phone then walked back into the kitchen.

"Hello," she said cheerfully, but Charlie grew concerned when the color visibly drained out of her face

"Miss Rendell," said a sinister voice. "Listen very carefully if you ever want to see your brother again."

"Who are you and what do you want?" Chele said, sounding much braver than she felt.

"Now, now, Miss Rendell, control your temper or we shall be forced to…cause your brother some discomfort."

"Don't hurt him! He's only a kid, for heaven's sake!"

"Since you don't sound very co-operative, I think our conversation is over. You will find a list of our demands if you open your front door. Goodbye."

"Wait, I want to talk to him," all she heard was the dial tone. Chele dropped the phone on the bench and ran for the front door. When she opened it, a letter floated to the ground. Charlie, who had followed her from the kitchen, read it over her shoulder.

Dear Miss Rendell,

We have your brother. Follow our demands and he will not be harmed. One week from tonight, at midnight, you are to deliver $100,000 in unmarked bills to 155 Chandler St. Come alone, do not call the police, don't be late and do not under any circumstances bring weapons of any kind. Your disregard of these terms may result in a fatality. Danny's fate is in your hands. If you alert the authorities, we will know.

"Chele?" Charlie said, gently taking the note from her hands and steering her to sit on the couch. "Why don't I call my brother? He'll know what to do."

"You never mentioned a brother. What would he be able to do, anyway?"

"Don's my older brother, he's with the FBI. He'll be able to help."

"NO! They said they'd hurt him if we contacted the police. That includes the FBI. I just want him back. I'm going to call the bank and arrange to empty my account, maybe take out a mortgage on the house, or see if they'll give me a loan."

She went over to the phone and dialled the number for the bank. After a short conversation, she started to look a bit teary. Charlie noticed and sat down beside her.

"Okay, thanks anyway." she ended the call and turned to Charlie. "Everything's going wrong. Their system was hacked into and all my money's gone." she started sobbing and Charlie pulled her into a hug and let her cry on his shoulder.

"Don't worry, everything will be alright, we'll think of something." Charlie said softly. He'd already decided that as soon as she went to sleep, he was gong to call Don. "Look, why don't you go have a rest. You've had a tough day."

"Okay, thanks Charlie." She got up and went to her room, closing the door behind her. Charlie waited a few minutes until he was sure she wasn't leaving her room anytime soon, then he lunged for the phone and dialled his home number.

"Hello?" Came Alan's voice.

"Hey, dad, It's me Charlie. Is Don around?"

"Charlie? Where are you? You had us worried sick!" Charlie could hear Don's voice in the background, then it sounded like they were fighting over the phone.

"Charlie? It's Don, where are you, buddy?" Charlie could tell Don was worried.

"Um, Don, I don't really know how to tell you this, but I'm in Australia." Charlie held the phone away from his ear in anticipation of Don's reaction.

"AUSTRALIA? What the hell are you doing in Australia? Did you suddenly have the urge to go on holiday?! Cos you could've told us." Even with the phone at arm's length, Charlie could hear Don's cries.

"Hang on there Donny, before you bite my head off, just know that I didn't choose to come here, I was here when I woke up."

"Are you okay?" Don's voice had gone from annoyed to concerned, in a heartbeat. "Are you alone? Who brought you there? Are they feeding you? Did they hurt you? Why Australia of all places?"

"Don, chill, you're going to give yourself an aneurism." Charlie gave a small laugh. "I'm fine. Actually the real reason I called is because this girl here-"

"Was she kidnapped too?" Don interrupted.

"No, she lives here. Don, her brother was kidnapped and she's really broken up about it. Her bank account was hacked into and emptied, so she can't pay them. If she goes to the cops, they'll kill her brother." Charlie had said all this very fast and Don was a bit confused as he was only getting the basics of the story without any background info.

"Look, Charlie, why don't you start from the beginning and tell me everything you know. Then I'll try to get the first flight out to wherever you are. Where are you anyway? I mean, man, Australia's just a big chunk of desert, right?"

"Actually, that's a common misconception. So is the idea that there are dirt roads and kangaroos all over the place."

"Chuck, save it for some other time. Where are you?"

"Melbourne. 12 Prince-Charles Avenue."

"Okay. I'll catch the first flight out. For now, just tell me everything you know about the girl, about the kidnapping, and anything else."

Charlie told Don everything that had happened since he woke up and Don listened with minimal interruptions.


The next morning brought with it rain clouds. Chele noticed these and made a mental note to make sure all the windows were shut before the storm arrived. She looked at the illuminated digits on her alarm clock and saw that it was only 8:30. It took a moment before she remembered Charlie and so she got out of bed to look for him.

Charlie turned around when he heard her enter the kitchen "Coffee?" He lifted the coffee pot to make his point clear.

"Gladly. I was hoping yesterday had all been just a dream, but now I can see there was something good about my unexpected guest"

"Talking of unexpected guests, I called Don and he's on his way." Charlie said sheepishly. "He just called back about 10 minutes ago; he'll be here in forty minutes."

"YOU CALLED DON?!! HOW COULD YOU!! ARE YOU TRYING TO GET THEM TO KILL MY BROTHER??!!" While she shouted she had unconsciously stepped forward and grabbed a kitchen knife. Charlie eyed the knife warily and was about to ask her to put it down, when she whirled around and threw it at the wall. The knife hit a painting of a mountainside and just stuck out of it until the whole picture fell off the wall revealing several other knife marks it had previously been covering.

"Chele, I'm sorry, but he was bound to come find me eventually. I mean, I was totally MIA until I called. If he didn't hear from me he would've presumed something bad had happened, with my involvement in his cases, anything's possible."

"You're right, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have lost my temper, but I'm a little on edge with what happened yesterday and all. I'm gonna go get ready."

Chele left to get changed and Charlie hung the painting back on the wall, picked up the knife and put it back in its rightful place.

A short while later Chele re-emerged looking fresh-faced and, Charlie thought, quite pretty. She was wearing a pair of faded black jeans, and a Led Zeppelin t-shit under a camouflage jacket complete with fur-lined hood (faux fur, of course). She had done her make-up so that her eyes looked silver and bright.

She was about to ask something when they heard a car pull up in front of the house. Chele and Charlie arrived at the door at almost the same time, both having bolted for the front of the house as soon as they heard the car.

When they got outside, Don was standing on the sidewalk, watching the cab drive off. He didn't notice them standing until Charlie called his name. He turned and was walking up the drive when Charlie spotted the green sedan driving up the street. What caught his attention was the man with the gun hanging out the window, aiming at them.

"Don, gun!" Charlie shouted. Don, who was closer to Chele, pushed her to the ground as the gunshots began. There was a strangled cry from Charlie, the sound of breaking glass as the windows shattered, and more gunshots as Don returned fire. Then all that was audible was the sound of squealing tires as the vehicle drove off.

When the smoke cleared, no one was left standing. There was silence. Pure, terrifying, deafening silence. But was anyone left to hear it?


Thank-you again everyone. Now, I'm working on Ch3 at the moment so hopefully I'll be able to post it in a few days.

Don't forget to review. :) Thx again.