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Choices of the Heart

Chapter 12

That night, Frank didn't sleep a wink. He kept seeing the note he had found every time he closed his eyes. Other times, he'd just about doze when he'd see either Callie's face or Joe's calling out for him, begging him for help. In those moments, he instinctively reached out for Callie to hold her; but Callie wasn't there. He found himself sitting up in a cold sweat, heart beating rapidly, fearing the worst fate for his brother and fiancée.

At 6:00 the next morning, Frank heard a knock on the door. Opening it, he found himself looking at Vanessa, who obviously hadn't slept, either.

"Come in," he said softly to her, nervously running a hand through his wavy dark hair.

Vanessa met his eyes and nodded, following him into the room and sitting down on the bed. She took a deep breath and tried to remain in control, although she had been up most of the night crying. The thought that something could happen to Joe was incomprehensible to her. And Callie—well, she was like a sister to her after all these years. Where are they? she murmured silently to herself. Please let them be okay.

Frank sat down next to her. "Van," he began, slowly. "After you left last night, I kept checking around searching for more clues. I found…" He stopped, as he heard his voice trembling. In a moment he continued, getting up and walking to the closet. "I found these."

Turning around, he sat next to Vanessa and handed her the bag. Opening it, she gasped. "Frank!" she cried. "These are the pictures that Callie took before we left, and I think ones that she took when we went back. Oh, my God! What happened to them?" She stared at the fragments of pictures, which seemed to have been violently torn apart.

"I don't know," Frank said steadily. Vanessa turned to him. Although his voice and mannerisms were calm, she could see the pain and fear in his eyes. He continued. "I guess whoever broke in here last night was really trying to send Callie a clear message. She must have found these when she found the frame and the note. I should have…" Frank had to stop, and he realized that his hands were clenched into fists. I should have come back with her that night, he thought for the thousandth time. None of this would have happened.

Vanessa sensed what he was about to say, and gently placed her hand on his shoulder. "Don't, Frank," she said softly. "This isn't your fault. What we have to do now is to find them—somehow."

"I know—you're right," he said, gratefully. If he concentrated on the past, nothing would get solved. Still, as he looked at a picture Vanessa had taken on the night he had gotten engaged, he had to blink back tears. There was Joe in the middle, smiling happily, giving Callie a kiss on the cheek while his other arm had been around Frank. That was how life had been up until yesterday. He was struck by how quickly things could change.

"So, where do we start?" Vanessa asked, determined to do something to help.

Frank took a deep breath. "We go back—again—to where Callie initially saw the men. Maybe there's something there. Maybe…" He paused, as an idea hit him. "Maybe Callie and Joe went back there! Wouldn't that make sense?! I mean, if she was threatened, wouldn't Joe do that? Of course he would!" Frank stood up at once, realizing what his brother probably would have done. He had to rely on knowing Joe well enough to predict his movements; after years of investigations together, he was pretty good at that.

Vanessa caught the enthusiasm. "You're right! We should go!"

"Now," Frank replied, heading for the door.

"Wait," Vanessa said suddenly. "These guys were angry about the photographs, right? I mean, that's a pretty clear reason why they would have torn them up. Maybe we can take the remnants with us, and compare them to what we see."

Frank rubbed his forehead in concentration. "Van, that's an excellent idea- later. Right now, I just want to see if Joe and Callie are there. I guess we should take a camera, though. You never know." He looked at her and gave her a tight smile. "Now, are we ready?"

"You bet," Vanessa replied, grabbing Callie's camera from the dresser.

Frank, led on by Vanessa's directions, reached the area in record time. As soon as they approached the area into which they had all ventured approximately one week ago, Frank and Vanessa simultaneously gasped. There was Joe's car, parked near the entrance trail to the woods. As soon as Frank saw it, he parked the car, and ran to Joe's, followed closely by Vanessa.

Frank peered inside, and saw nothing. He didn't know if he was relieved or distressed, dreading what he might see, and fearing that Joe and Callie were still missing.

Vanessa opened the passenger side door, and reached over to pop the driver's side door open as well. "Joe always locks the car," Frank said nervously as he peered in.

"Maybe they weren't expecting to find anything," Vanessa added.

"They were wrong," Frank said, choking back his words.

As they looked around the car, Frank was taken by how normal everything looked. There were Joe's sunglasses, his little framed picture of Vanessa, and the air-freshener that he had hanging from the rearview mirror. As Vanessa checked inside, Frank looked at the outside locks, noting that they were unlocked and there didn't appear to be any sign of struggle.

"Oh, no!" he heard Vanessa say from inside.

"What?" he asked, opening the door to get a good look at her.

"I found Joe's cell phone. He… he must have expected to be right back." Vanessa looked at him through tear-filled eyes.

Frank paused, trying to think clearly. "Van," he said at last, "I'm going to check out the initial spots they went to. Stay here; lock the car; hold onto your cell phone and call at the first sign of trouble."

"I'm coming, Frank."

Frank wanted to stop her, but he didn't have the heart. Besides, if the situation was reversed, there was no way he'd stay back when someone he cared for was in trouble.

"Okay," he replied, unsure. "But be careful, please."

Arriving in the woods at the cabin, Frank and Vanessa initially found nothing, although Frank was careful to take good pictures of the sight to look at later. The scene overall was picturesque, hardly filled with evil premonitions.

"Frank, I… I know they've been here. They have to be here somewhere." At once, Vanessa started shouting for Joe and Callie. All she heard in reply was a distant echo.

Frank looked at Vanessa, wanting to call out, too, although somehow knowing that the attempt would be futile. Where had they gone? There had to be some clue, somewhere. Walking behind the cabin, Frank finally saw it—a little black something half-hidden by the leaves that didn't quite look in place. Running over, he bent down, and cleared the debris.

"No," he whispered, hands shaking. He had removed Callie's purse, and there was blood on it.

Fighting back tears, Frank clutched the purse tightly. Obviously, someone had hidden it there to get rid of evidence. He looked around again, and then noticed all the signs of a struggle he had missed before. The grass and twigs had been crushed, a sure sign of a vehicle that had recently been there. The dirt around the area seemed newer, as though someone had been digging or planting there recently. And then—there was the metal object, which Frank never would have seen had he not moved the leaves over, allowing the sunlight to glint off the ground. Frank walked over, already knowing what it was, and he wasn't disappointed; he had just found Joe's car keys.

Walking slowly over to Vanessa, he said nothing, just held out Callie's purse and the keys.

Her eyes grew wide in horror.

"Vanessa," he said in a shaky voice, "I think it's time to contact the police."

They stared at each other in silence, with an unspoken bond of shared terror and pain that they never thought they'd feel…..