"You're not Jackson." Lisa stepped closer the man posing as Jackson Rippner. "Who are you?"

The man stared at her for what seemed like an eternity, a strange emotion gleamed in his eyes and he finally cracked a smile.

"Thank you." He whispered in a hoarse voice.

"I'm sorry?" What on earth was going on? Was this a trick? Why was she sent all the way down here to meet with some imposter? Was Jackson in a different facility? Was he even in prison at all? It could explain the reason there were no pictures of him from the media or why no one focused much attention on him. Was this a setup?

"For not calling me Rippner." The man in explained. She could feel is pain just by gazing into his eyes. They looked so sad and empty. "You don't know long…" His voice cracked and his eyes brimmed with tears.

Lisa took a seat next to him and touched his shoulder. "Who are you? What's going on?"

The man sniffed and tried his best wipe the tears trembling down his face. The handcuffs only allowed him so much movement. Lisa couldn't help but feel pity for this man. A grown man in a maximum security prison just broke down in front of her. This was real, raw emotion. Whoever he was, he wasn't playing her. These were real tears. She had an urge to reach out and comfort him. But first, she needed answers.

"Please," Lisa begged, "tell me what's going on."

The man inhaled and exhaled deeply. "My name is Jason Gordon. I met a guy six months ago. Said his name was Donald Maguire. He said he could help me get revenge on the man that murdered my wife and children four years ago. I was a real mess. I shunned everyone since the day they were taken. I have no friends, no family…nothin." The man tried hard to keep his voice even and in control but his voice cracked every now and then. "The people who remember me, they're gone. Disappeared. My identity has been erased. My life…stolen." He glanced around the room for a few seconds and shook his head. "For what?" He couldn't keep it in anymore. His body shook violently and more tears were released.

Lisa did her best to comfort him. She rubbed his shoulder and whispered her sincere apologies. But she needed to know more. How did he get mistaken for Jackson? And more importantly, where was the real Jackson?

"I shouldn't have done it." He whispered softly.

"What?" Lisa tried to keep her voice as gentle as possible. "What did you do?"

"I took Maguire up on his offer. He showed me this picture, you see. This picture of a man fittin' the description of the sorry son-of-a-bitch who took away the only people I ever gave a damn about. This Maguire character, he, uh, he said works for an agency dealing with assassinations. Mostly high profile stuff. Important people. He said he felt a connection with me and he wanted to help. Free of charge." Jason laughed bitterly and then slammed his fist against the table. "Little did I know I was just a pawn. Just a man to take the place of another. Five months ago, I get this call from Maguire. Askin' me to meet him in Miami. Said he had new info on my wife's killer. I get to Miami and checked into a hotel that night. A little after 5:30 am I get another call. Tellin' me he has the bastard. He gave me an address and I headed on over. Found him standin' near the house he asked me to meet him at. I get out of the car and walk over to him. Next thing I know, I'm bein' grabbed from behind. I turned to fight. Then…nothing. Blackness. I wake up in a hospital. Everybody and their brother has been callin' me Jackson Rippner."

Lisa sat silently and absorbed everything he had just told her. So Jason was set up. He was scammed by Jackson's associates. They needed someone to play the part of Jackson while the real Jackson got away. She scoffed. She couldn't believe it. That son of a bitch. Jason was cheated out of a future because Jackson couldn't do his job properly. But there wasn't something she couldn't understand. Why did Maguire call Jason down to Florida before the incident? Was he on standby incase something did go wrong?

"Have you told anyone?" Lisa asked. She wished she could retract that question because of the evil glare he was now giving her.

He stared at her with such intensity that Lisa cowered away. "You think I'd stay silent over something like this? Just keep my mouth closed and play along?" His voice became louder and harsh. He was definitely getting angry.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you."

The man laughed and shook his head. He slammed his hands on the table and it vibrated erratically. "You think a little thing like you can upset me? Grow up, missy."

Lisa suddenly wanted to leave this room, this prison…this state. Jason was truly beginning to terrify her. She wanted leave. Now.

"I'm in prison for crimes I didn't commit. My life is over. I'm not Jason Gordon anymore. I'm Jackson fuckin' Rippner."

Lisa stood up and walked towards the door. Before she knocked to get the guards attention, she turned to face the man and whispered. "You're not Jackson." She spoke with confidence and determination. "If you were, you'd be lying in a pool of blood right now."

The man calmed down and his ears perked up.

"I promise you," Lisa continued speaking, "I will find him. I'll prove you're innocent, get my father back and kill him."

"If you live up to your word, miss, I will owe you my life and forever be in your debt."

Without another word, Lisa knocked on the steel door and waited for the guard to let her out. She was hoping she would soon receive another phone call from the mysterious kidnapper who sent her to Ohio for absolutely no reason. What was the point of this? To see for herself that the real Jackson Rippner was a free man? She wouldn't be surprised if Jackson is watching her right now. Hell, she half expects to see him waiting in the car.

What should she do now? Tell someone in the prison that they made a mistake? Wait for the next phone call? She didn't know. Everything seemed so surreal. There was one surprise after another.

Back at the hotel, Lisa had written down everything Jason told her. She needed to keep organized. She couldn't forget anything.

Her cell phone started ringing and she dashed across the room to retrieve it.

"Hello?"

"Do we have a deal?" Asked the deep voice.

"What deal? What's going on? Where is Jackson?"

"That's what you're going to find out."

Lisa looked dumbstruck. "I'm sorry?"

"I told you the other night. We both want the same thing."

"You don't know where Jackson is?"

"Nope."

"How is that possible? Aren't you the guys who framed an innocent man to help Jackson escape?"

The voice chuckled. "It wasn't about helping him escape. We kept him away from the police so we could finish him off ourselves. We have a certain routine we follow after an employee screws up as badly as Rippner. After we fixed him up, good ole Jack vanished."

"You mean, Jackson isn't apart of this? He didn't tell you to kidnap my dad? And why would you fix him up if you intended on killing him?"

"One question at a time, Lisa."

"Why did you kidnap my father? What does he have to do with this?"

"It was the only way to ensure your cooperation."

"Why would you need my cooperation? How is kidnapping my father going to give you Jackson?"

"You ruined his life, Lisa. If he sees you, I guarantee he'll show his face."

"You can't even find him and you're highly trained professionals. How do you expect me to find him?"

"All you have to do is wonder around and he'll come to you. He's shriveling away from us. He knows he's dead the moment we find him. If we have you on our side, we'll find him shortly. As a team."

"I'm not on your side. I'm not on Jackson's side either. I just want my father back."

"Seeing as how I've got your father, I'd say you're on my side if plan on seeing him again."

"I really don't have any other options, do I?"

"No."

"What do I when he comes after me?"

"Bring him to us."

"How? Won't he be too busy trying to kill me?"

"I don't care how you do it. Just do it. Deceive him. Make him trust you and lead him to us. Your life will go back to normal once he's in our custody. Shit, I'll even throw in a bonus. You'll receive a large amount of cash as a 'thank you' present."

"No, thanks. I don't want to get paid for having a person killed. I'm not like you or Jackson."

"Fair enough. Remember your job. Flaunt yourself. Stay exposed and he'll come for you."

"Am I staying in Ohio?"

"No. Look underneath your pillows. You have a flight to catch tonight."

"Great." Lisa rolled her eyes and lifted the pillows to see a plane ticket. She held it up to see where her next destination would be. "Seattle?" Lisa dropped the ticket back on the bed and furrowed her eyebrows. "You think Jackson is all the way in Washington?"

"We have reason to believe he is in that area, yes."

Lisa sighed and flopped on the bed. "This is unbelievable. I don't know if I can do this." She ran her fingers through her hair and tried to keep herself from crying. This was far too overwhelming.

"There is someone who wishes to speak to you." There was a brief pause and a shuffling sound on the other end.

"Lisa?" A familiar voice. A voice she had been longing to hear.

Lisa bolted up straight and couldn't control her emotions. Tears spilled over her eyes, rolled down her cheeks and dripped off her chin.

"Dad?"

"Lisa, oh, honey."

"Daddy! Oh my God. It's so good to hear your voice. Are you okay? Are they feeding you? Do they hurt you?"

"They…"

Lisa could hear a struggle over the phone and she panicked. "Dad? Dad? What's going on!?"

"Take a nap before your flight, Lisa. You have a long night ahead of you." The deep voice was back and Lisa was burning with rage.

"What did you do to my father?"

"He's fine. Relax. The closer you are to finding Jackson, the longer you will be allowed to speak to your dad."

"I hate you."

"Goodbye, Lisa."

"No! Wait!"

Lisa expected to hear a click, like usual, but surprisingly, he listened this time.

"You didn't answer one of my questions." Lisa said quickly.

"What's the question?"

"Why did you heal Jackson if you were going to kill him?"

"To torture him, of course. It's not as thrilling to kill a nearly dead man. We like to take our time."

"You're sick."

"Goodbye, Lisa."

This time she heard a click.

Please, please review if you like or even dislike this story! I just wanna know if anyone is actually reading it. There's no point in posting it online if no one is interested in the story! I'm really into this story and I'll update more than once a day if anyone is reading but I might end up losing interest if no one reviews. :(