Milly and Ulrich were in a private room in the police station. Milly was crying uncontrollably as Ulrich tried to console her. She had bailed him out on the charges of wreckless driving and resisting arrest. When he was free, Ulrich told Milly about Yumi, three minutes later they were in the room. Sitting on two chairs with Milly mostly leaning on Ulrich for emotional support, a police officer walked in. He sat at the chair at the other end of the table and looked at Ulrich.

" When was she kidnaped?" The police officer asked.

" At about three?" Ulrich answered.

" Could you get a positive id on a suspect?" Ulrich shook his head as the officer continued with questions.

" You say you were pursuing the van that your daughter was placed into during the incident." Ulrich nodded, then waited. " Do you know of any motives of why?"

" No. We're not rich, we're not special or important in anyway. We're just a middle class family trying to make it." The officer wrote down his response.

" We cannot start a search until she had been missing for twenty four hours, so we'll need you.." The officer began before Milly interrupted.

" Twenty four hours! My daughter was taken! Taken for no reason. She's a little girl and people do.. Do horrible things to little girls!" Milly said still in tears.

" I'm sorry, it's just procedure."

" To hell with you and police procedure. I want to know where my daughter is. If she's alright, if she's even alive." Milly said, then broke out into a deeper crying. Ulrich hugged her tightly as she just cried on him.

" What about the van. You were after it for awhile, did you read the plates?"

" There were none."

" Is see," The officer said, trying to think of something to tell Milly. " I'm sure she's fine Mrs. Stern." That didn't help.

" Fine! You think she's fine! My eight year old was just snatched from a crowd, and shoved into a van. She's scared, alone, or worse. And you have th nerve to say she's fine. Fuck you!"

" Calm down."

" Will everyone stop telling me to calm down! I have a reason to not be calm! Why are you so calm!" Milly shouted at the officer.

" He's right Milly," Ulrich said to his scared wife. " It's better to think that's she's alright, than to think she isn't." Milly looked at Ulrich and saw the logic in what he was saying. Milly was just thinking the worst. It was a bad situation, but she was making it worse for herself. Milly sat back down and began to cry again.

Ulrich's phone rang a second later as Ulrich took it out of his pocket. Looking at who was calling he read, ' blocked call.' Answering it he asked, " Who is this?"

" Put it on speaker phone, I know where you are." Ulrich hit speaker as the man continued to speak. " I have your daughter. Let me insure you that she is unharmed, but whether or not she stays unharmed is up to you."

" What do you want. Money?" Ulrich asked.

" I'm talking not you," The man said. Ulrich stayed quiet as the man continued. " Now look. All I want is to play a little game. Win, you get your daughter, lose, well you get it." The police officer was writing down everything he said.

" What kind of game?"

" I thought you'd never ask. A game of hide and seek. I'm going to hide your daughter, then you have to find her." The man said.

" Where is she?" Ulrich asked angry.

" It's hide and seek, I can't spoil the fun," he said as if it was a game.

" You son of a bitch, just give me my daughter," Milly shouted into the phone.

" Just for that, she's no longer unharmed." Milly gasped and began to plead.

" No don't! I'm sorry!" They heard a door open then heard footsteps come toward the phone.

" Mommy! Daddy!" Yumi shouted from the other side of the phone. They heard a sound that sounded like a slap then her scream.

" Stop it!" Milly shouted in the phone. " Please don't hurt her!" Milly begged in tears.

" You have a week to find her. Here's a clue. It's a place where delusionals meet. They come here and greet, and kiss the feet of the delusion." The phone went dead as Ulrich the sound of no connection and pressed end.

" What the hell does that mean?" Ulrich asked. " Delusionals? Delusion. More mind games for me."


Ulrich and Milly slept at the police department so if the kidnapper called the police could try to trace the call. The phone didn't ring the entire night as Milly couldn't sleep. Ulrich didn't sleep either, they just lay on the couch in the lobby, trying to sleep. In the morning the police brought them some coffee and breakfast as they sat in the room again. Milly had to go to work, but didn't calling in. At first her boss didn't believe her, her excuse being her daughter had been kidnapped.

Ulrich was in the room alone when the case had been opened as a kidnaping and a missing person case. Sitting in the chair, Ulrich was waiting for the detective to walk in. The officer hadn't told him who was assigned to the case yet so Ulrich was about to meet the detective. Seeing two blurred figures through the foggy glass of the door window, he saw a man talking to a woman. The man walked away and the woman opened the door.

A beautiful blacked haired woman stepped into the room holding the case folder. Placing it on the table Ulrich looked at her, getting a better view. The woman was wearing a long black skirt and a white blouse that was buttoned up to the last three buttons, showing some cleavage. Her hair was pulled into a bun and she was wearing glass that looked a little misplaced, but gave her an almost sophisticatedly sexy appearance. Stepping into the room, Ulrich heard her high heels stepping as she looked over a few papers in the folder.

" I'd take it you're the detective for my case," Ulrich said to her. The woman nodded and walked over to him. " If you don't know already, I'm Ulrich Stern. The victims father." Ulrich stood up and shook her hand as nodded.

" I know your name. And yes, I'm the detective. Don't even think about it, I have a gun on my ankle." She said, as if she got that look Ulrich was giving her a lot. The look screamed, ' Damn your hot!' " I'm a french department of missing or lost people detective Delmas." Ms. Delmas let his hand go and took a seat at her chair. Ulrich looked at her closer then remembered.

" No way," Ulrich said to her. Ms. Delmas nodded. " Sissi?"

" I know. Last place you'd think to find me. Besides recently, how you been." She asked, knowing that recently he wasn't okay.

" Alright I guess. Still a little shook from the incident twenty five years ago, but other than that and my daughter, I'm fine." Sissi smiled at him. He was still a s cool as ever. For Ulrich is more than just that for Sissi. When he left jr high in France and went to high school in Germany he left thinking Sissi was an average looking girl who pestered everyone. Now look at her. A hot detective with a gun.

" Now we can catch up later. For now let's go over some stuff for this investigation." Ulrich nodded, wanting to proceed. " Kidnaped at school, placed into a black van without plates, and a confirmed kidnaping. Received one phone call from the kidnaper, giving you a riddle and a time limit. That's all we have. Perhaps a few witness from the school, teachers, students."

" I don't see why not. But the bastard hit her."

" I know. That's why we need to find her before all he does is make bruises. Did he ask for a ransom?"

" No. Just to play a little hide and seek. It's a game to him." Sissi nodded in agreement, apparently of had a few cases like this. " What is the chance of us getting her back. Don't lie and give me a bull shit stay calm answer. The truth. Will I get my daughter back." Sissi looked at him. She knew the facts, and they weren't good.

" In this country, last year every hour someone was kidnapped, and only three percent of those people were found alive. About eight thousand seven hundred people a year are kidnapped in France alone. About two hundred make it out of the situation alive. So to be honest Ulrich, it's slim to none." Ulrich lowered his head. " I'm sorry, it's just how it is. The man is violent we know that. He doesn't want money so he has nothing to lose. But what we have to do is solve the riddle and go from there." Ulrich nodded. " How about we discus it over coffee."


Ulrich alone met Sissi at a café down town where she was already waiting for him. Already buying him coffee he sat down as Sissi took her glasses off. " Do you even need those?" Ulrich asked, the Sissi he remembered not needed glasses.

" Not really no. I spend a lot of my work at a computer desk, they help so that I don't damage my eyes from long shifts of typing." Sissi answered, taking a sip of her coffee.

" I have a pair of those. They really do help."

" Something's bugging me. I mean, Milly Solovieff. Who saw that one coming. You two even went to high school in separate countries." Ulrich shook his head, expecting that question.

" My high school reunion in Germany I was just sitting around drinking. I was tired of everyone giving me bs post high school stories so I sit alone in the back. I order a drink and one of the caterers for the party brings it to me. She starts walking away, then turned around and looks at me again. I look at her, she looks at me. Then she asks me, ' Are you Ulrich Stern?' Which is funny because I was wearing a name tag." Sissi giggled from that lack of examination. " It was Milly."

" I read she didn't go to college, decided to work." It was standard to read her record to help find a motive.

" Yep. Ended up catering at my party. Before I knew I, I took her to my hotel room and.."

" I get it." Sissi said, not wanting to here the details. Ulrich smiled at her not wanting to know.

" You been married?" Sissi shook her head. " You, never married?"

" I've been engaged twice, then they met my father and got pissed scared." Ulrich laughed as she continued, " I'm not joking." Ulrich stopped laughing, her not wanting to talk about it. "No man has ever been able to survive my father's wrath. He asks them penetrating questions like, have you penetrated my daughter?"

" That'll make one head for the hills."

" Worked every time. Well he moved so if I do take another shot at it, I won't tell him."

" Good call."

" Mind if I ask how Milly is as a wife?" Ulrich thought for a good answer.

" She's good. We rarely argue, we share the house work, she's a great mother, and good in bed I might add." Sissi smiled and shook her head.


After another ten minutes of conversation they took their coffee and left to the police department. Ulrich and Sissi sat in her office trying to figure out the message the bad guy left.

" Where the delusionals meet, they come here and greet, and kiss the feet of the delusion." Sissi said aloud, hoping saying it would help. " Delusion, delusion. Overconfident people, movie stars, models, delusionals. Mental institute...no that doesn't fit the delusion."

" You should take a break." Ulrich said to Sissi who had been figuring it out for two hours. Looking at his watch he said, " I'm going to bed. Will I ever be allowed to go home and sleep?"

" If we have confirmed information that all he wants is your daughter and to screw with your minds then yes. For now you and Milly need to stay here guarded." Ulrich nodded and understood it was for his safety. " Night Ulrich."

" Thanks, but I doubt I'd be able to sleep." Sissi stood up off her chair and walked over to him.

" It's hard I understand. But try to get some sleep. I know what your going through." Ulrich looked at her a little angry after he last comment.

" You know? You don't know a damn thing about what the hell I'm going through Sissi. I had my daughter snatched from a crowd, shoved into a van screaming for me to hep her. I had to watch that. I now I have to try not to think about what the hell that bastard is doing to her. So don't you dare say you know what I'm going through." Sissi looked at him. She looked angry, and a little sad. Ulrich wasn't sure why.

" Just because I was never married Ulrich," Sissi said, looking him in the eye. " Doesn't mean I was never a mother." She left her office and slammed the door behind her.