By the time the rain stopped, it was pitch black outside. Rossi had decided that they would need rest if they were going to be at their best in the morning. They fell asleep right next to each other. A hand clamped down over Penelope's mouth. She let out a muffled scream, which woke up Rossi.
"Get off of her!"
He jumped up, but as soon as he was on his feet, he fell back down. Garcia saw a taser in the man's hand.
"Now are you going to come with me, or do I have to do the same to you?"
Garcia was frozen with fear. A hand pulled her up and dragged her outside. There was a truck waiting for them. The older man was in the driver' s seat. Brian took her by the hand and led her to the passenger's side.
"Get in the middle," he said.
Penelope obeyed him. The older man looked at her with disgust.
"You better thank him," he said," he just saved your life."
The truck started, and the three of them drove off into the night. Between the sound of the engine, and the bumpy terrane, attempting to start a conversation would have been pointless. They stopped at a large, two-story house.
"I'll take her to the children," Brian said.
"Children? You have kids here?"
"Let's go," he said.
He took her into the house and opened a door in the kitchen. There was a set of stairs that led to a basement.
"Go downstairs," he said," and get some rest. I'll see you in the morning."
He lightly shoved her inside and slammed the door behind her. She quickly grabbed the railing and walked down the steps. There were two cots on the floor. One had a teenage girl, and the other had a young boy with brown curly hair.
"What's going on?" the boy asked.
"Nothing," the girl whispered," go back to sleep."
The girl got up and approached Garcia. She put a finger to her lips and pointed to the boy.
"Who are you?" she whispered.
"My name's Penelope," Garcia answered," my colleague and I were kidnapped."
"I'm sorry to hear that," the girl said," I'm Marley, and he's Zachary."
They sat down on a couch and continued talking in low voices.
"A few days ago, I was helping my mom with the dishes, and the doorbell rang. She went to answer it, and then she ran back into the kitchen. When she came back, there were two men with guns. They shot my mom and told me to go into the basement, with Zack. I thought when my dad got home, he could do something, but they killed him,' she said sadly," I don't know if Zack knows. If he doesn't, I want to keep it that way for as long as possible. I've been trying to stay strong for him, but-"
Marley broke down into quiet sobs. Garcia embraced her with loving arms.
"You have been so strong," she said quietly," we are going to find a way out of here. Have they said anything else to you?"
"The old guy," Marley said," he wanted to kill us the night they killed my parents. He said it would be safer, but the young guy wouldn't let him. He said the old guy never gave him a chance to have his own family."
"Is there a way for us to contact anybody?"
"No," Marley said," Zack has his iPad, but my mom had this ap that let her set limits on our internet. They made me turn off the internet."
Garcia's eyes lit up.
"How long do we have before they come back?"
"We probably have a few hours," said Marley.
"That's all I need," Garcia said with confidence.
Dave had spent the last hour trying to move, but it was taking forever. He slowly got up and stepped out of the cave. The sun had begun to rise. He could see where the truck had been, and he followed the trail that had been made.
"Hold on," he said quietly," I'm coming."
