Enjoy!:

Chapter 10: Day 2

It was still the morning after Lyrica's arrest.

Dipper, Candy, Sekhmet, Raven, Lee, Nate, Elton, Alicia, Cameron, Peter, Carl, Sahara, and Pacifica were all having a meeting in Candy's basement.

"Thank you all for coming!" Dipper said. "There is something that we need to discuss: As some of you may know, last night, Lyrica was arrested last night under the charges of credit card theft and aiding an illegal action."

"But the only reason that she did that was because the kidnapper had called Lyrica and blackmailed her with Rosalind's life," Candy said.

"Wait, why are you saying 'the kidnapper'?"Alicia asked.

"Yeah, isn't it Patrick?" Peter added.

"Well, based on Lyrica's interviews from last night, it sounds like someone else is helping Patrick with all this," Dipper replied.

"So what's your point?" Pacifica said.

Candy sighed. "If the kidnapper calls, don't answer. And if you do happen to answer and he asks you to do something, just say no."

"How are we supposed to know when they're calling?" Nate asked.

"Usually, they'll use a blocked number," Dipper answered.

"Either way, are you sure this is the right decision?" Sahara asked. "I mean, Lyrica did as she was told and Rosalind was found earlier this morning."

Candy pursed her lips. "I was afraid you all would have this reaction. But if you report these calls, then it'll be easier for us to track Patrick and whoever his partner is. Understood?"

The others nodded silently.

"Wait a second," Pacifica suddenly said. "What gives you to the power to tell us what to do?"

Dipper smiled. "Well, since Candy and I figured out the credit card theft mystery so quickly, the Gravity Falls Police Department is making us Under-Rank Police Officers. That gives us the power to carry certain weapons, help on certain investigations like this one, and make cautionary arrests."

"A cautionary arrest is if we think that someone is doing something unlawful, we can detain them until a real police officer comes and then he or she can either make an official arrest, or dent it," Candy explained.

Peter shrugged. "I'm pretty sure no other police department in the world does that, but okay."

Twenty minutes later, Elton was in the basement doing some research for Candy when his phone vibrated.

After looking at the Caller ID, Elton realized that he was being called by a blocked number. He began to feel conflicted. He knew this was something Dipper and Candy had would want them to report, but he feared that his cousin would die if he did not answer.

Reluctantly, Elton pressed talk. "Hello?"

"Are you the cousin of the kid with the really long name?" a distorted voice asked.

"Do you mean the Super Royal President Awesome Commandant Mountain Dew Herbert Singsongcammalammadingdong Ping-Pong Orias Utechbet Viskiiikkiiol of the House of Royal Republic Presidency of New Frontier, the Last Few Remaining United States of America Colonies?" Elton asked.

"Yes, are you his cousin?"

"Yeah. Why are you calling me?"

"Well, if you want the Super Royal President Awesome Commandant…you know what, I'm just gonna call him Sam…if you want Sam to live, then I need you to do something for me," the distorted voice said. "But first, I must ask…do you know how to drive a train?"

This took Elton by surprise. "No, why?"

"Tonight, the shipment of products Lyrica ordered will arrive in a secure Gravity Falls location, but I will have someone else transfer them to a different location. One of my associates will bring the merchandise to the Gravity Falls train station, load it all on a train, and all you have to do is drive it wherever I tell you to go."

"Won't the police be able to track the train, though?"

"I'll make sure o have someone else get the police off your trail. Do you understand what you need to do?"

"Essentially. But where do I lead the train to?"

"I'll tell you that tonight once you're at the train station." The kidnapper hung up.

Up at the hostages' mansion, nothing significant was going on.

This was true until about noon. At that time, the ninjas came into the living room/buffet room area and brought out a beaten looking Manly Dan and threw him on the floor.

Wendy had been overjoyed to see her father and cried tears of joy. "Oh, Dad! I'm so glad you're back. But what did they do to you in there?"

"It…it was horrible," Manly Dan stammered. "They tortured m-me over a-and over again. I s-should have never tried to break us out."

Mabel had a hard time watching this. Manly Dan was usually so confident, but now, he seemed like a kid who had been bullied on the playground.

"Well, it's okay now, because we're together," Wendy said.

Mabel noticed that most of the other hostages were watching the father and daughter reunion with a mixture of looks that included shock, pity, and happiness.

Nonetheless, Mabel smiled at Robin and Amanda. "You know, it feels nice to have been able to make a difference. I bet Manly Dan wouldn't even be out here if it wasn't for the way I spoke to Patrick yesterday."

Robin rubbed his chin with his thumb and pointer finger. "I'm not too sure about that. Now don't get me wrong…I'm glad that he's back, but I was convinced that the Patrick and the kidnappers had killed him. I mean, why wouldn't they? And seeing him now is sorta like seeing him come back from the dead."

"Plus, a couple of those injuries he has kinda look like make-up," Amanda added.

"What are you two saying?" Mabel said. "That the kidnappers want us to think they tortured Manly Dan even though they really didn't? Why would they do that?"

"Honestly, I don't know," Amanda answered. "But aside from us being kidnapped, there's something really weird going on. And I want to know what it is."

~Jameer14