I apologize to all the readers who have been waiting for the next chapter! RL threw me a couple of curve balls in the form of depression and ill health, and it was hard to get back on the wagon again. So thanks for your patience, and I hope you enjoy! The saga will be wrapping up soon, but not without some nail biting moments!

CHAPTER 21

Thursday evening, 6:15pm

She decided that it wasn't worth struggling anymore.

For Kendra Billings, the last five days of her life had passed agonizingly slow. She could cope with that one annoying teacher in high school that scraped her nails down the ancient chalkboard on a daily basis. She could deal with the drills that she did every day to stay on the basketball team. Even the unfathomable amount of work her boss would give her was a walk in the park compared to this.

Being locked up in a dark, windowless room without any knowledge of her whereabouts, given minimal food and water, had made her despondent.

She knew that in the wake of the other women who had been killed, Nichole would have reported her missing immediately. They had just been talking about it, right before Kendra left for her morning run. If she had known the chances that she was the next victim, she would have never left the apartment.

She sighed, pulling futilely against the plastic zip ties securely fastening her to the wooden chair. It was curious that she was still alive; the other victims had all been found murdered. And yet she, assuming that she was the third victim, was still alive, but barely. With the rage in the eyes of the men who had brought her the slightest amount of sustenance daily, she considered herself lucky. Maybe there was still a chance.

Just when optimism began to rebuild itself, it was quickly crushed, either by her own pessimism or by the harsh words she heard in the corridors outside.

She blinked blindly, knowing that when her eyes opened she would still see black.

Then she heard a loud footfall outside. Her eyes shot immediately to the door frame.

It was pushed open by the man who had kidnapped her as he dragged another woman inside.

He didn't even bother to tie her up; the brunette woman was unconscious, and as her eyes adjusted to the bright light from the hallway Kendra noticed a bruise forming on her left upper cheek bone as she lay on the cool concrete floor.

She put up a fight, she remarked silently.

The man grimaced, then turned and shot her a beady glare.

All she could do was blink.

He sneered, then turned on his heel and walked out, slamming the door. She heard the locks click as her eyes began to readjust to the darkness.

The elation she felt at no longer being alone was quickly overshadowed by the need to talk to this woman. Seeing as how they had tied all of her limbs to the chair, Kendra couldn't use her foot to nudge the woman. And as much as she didn't want to alert her captors by using her voice, she didn't really see another alternative.

"Hey," she called in a sharp whisper. "Are you awake?"

The figure stirred, painstakingly turning her head with a heavy groan. "Umm. Just barely," she softly replied.

Better than nothing. "Do you know where you are?"

She shook her head as she rolled over, pressing the back of her head to the floor as she got her bearings. "No idea whatsoever." The woman glanced at her, and as her eyes became accustomed to the darkness, she blinked her eyes in surprise. "Kendra Billings."

It was Kendra's turn to widen her eyes. "You know me?"

"Besides your face being on the news for the past five days?"

So it has been five days. Wow. Felt like forever.

The woman continued. "I've been working on the case."

"You're a cop?"

The older woman shook her head as she sat up. "No. My name is Elizabeth Weir. I'm a medical examiner. I work with Metro PD."

"Do people think I'm dead?" she asked bluntly.

Weir rubbed her eyes and frowned. "What do you mean?"

"You're a coroner who's been working on the case," Kendra slowly replied, "so I take it to mean that my kidnapping is connected to the other two women who were murdered."

"Connected, yes. But no one thinks you're dead. The other victims were found immediately after their kidnapping. They changed their M.O. with you. They didn't want to kill you."

"Then why have I been locked up for the past five days?" she asked quizzically, just as the answer came to her mind.

"You were bait. They were trying to get me."

"Who's they? And what did you do to piss them off?"

She saw a faint smile as she answered. "The only reason they kidnapped me is because the man behind all of this wants to get even with my – a very close friend of mine who's on the police force."

"So who did this?"

Elizabeth paused, then answered. "A former Metro detective named Michael Kenmore."

Kendra's eyes closed tight in frustration. "The security guy."

"Yes. The security agency is the connection between all of us. You all worked at law firms that staged break-ins and then got the bid for new alarm companies."

The paralegal narrowed her eyes. "You said 'all of us'. What do you mean by that?"

"I was working undercover as a legal secretary to draw them out."

Kendra looked around the room, then smiled at her. "Nice job."

Elizabeth chuckled. "Yes, I suppose so."

The women fell silent for a moment as they began to seriously contemplate their situation. If Elizabeth's kidnapping was part of a bigger plan, then surely that meant that there would be police looking for her. Given that they knew who was behind all of this, they would know where to look. Kenmore had houses, offices, warehouses - it wouldn't take long to narrow the search and find them.

Suddenly, her heart dropped. The words that Elizabeth had spoken earlier began to echo in her ears. I am bait. I was the bait. They have Elizabeth, which was their goal. So where does that leave me if they don't make it in time?

"They don't have a use for me anymore," Kendra voiced aloud, causing Elizabeth to look up sharply at her.

"What?"

"They have you. If I was the bait to get you, and you are the bait to get the cops here, then they don't need me anymore."

She knew that Elizabeth couldn't deny that. However, judging by the next words to leave her mouth, it seemed that she had much more experience in keeping people calm.

"They have proven to be unpredictable in the past. I wouldn't discount that just yet."

Kendra nodded as she processed what that really meant. We don't know for sure. They may not kill you.

Determined to stay cautiously optimistic, she sat back in the chair and waited for the rescue she wasn't positive was coming.

As Sam was relaxing in his recliner, their baby against her shoulder, Jack O'Neill's cell phone rang.

He groaned, hanging his head as he stood from the couch. "Don't I get a night off?"

Sam chuckled as she rubbed small circles on Mandy's back. "You're 'the man'. You asked for this."

He smirked, then answered his phone. "Yeah," he greeted casually, seeing as how he recognized the number.

"Elizabeth's been kidnapped," a panicked voice told him.

Jack spun around, brown eyes wide as he stared at Sam.

Her blue eyes shone with worry. What is it? she mouthed.

"When?" Jack asked, gaze lingering on his wife.

"Probably right after she left the precinct. We found Walston tied up in Kenmore's basement, but no sign of that arrogant bast-"

"How do you know she's been taken?" Jack asked, trying his best to control the detective's flared temper while trying to rein in his own.

"I called her mother. She said Elizabeth was at the park in front of her house going for a run, but it's been an hour. There's no sign of her."

"Sheppard, she might've gone a different way."

"Captain, I ran that same route with Elizabeth every week. She never changed it up, despite me asking her to. Besides, Walston said that Kenmore was grabbing her."

Jack growled in his throat, grabbing his jacket that had been thrown over the back of the couch when they arrived home. "Maybe it's me, but you should've mentioned that first."

He heard a disappointed sigh. "Yes, sir," Sheppard quietly conceded.

"All right. Any idea where she would be?"

"Walston said that Kenmore was still holding Kendra Billings at his office complex. Mitchell, Lorne, and I are on our way there right now."

"All right, I'll meet you there. We're gonna get her back, John."

Sheppard shuddered as he exhaled. "Yes, sir."

"And Sheppard? Make sure you have witnesses when you shoot the son of a-"

"Jack!" Sam exclaimed from the recliner, throwing a pointed glare at her husband as she pointed at their infant daughter.

"Meet you there," Jack replied, ending the conversation. He slipped the phone into his pocket, then looked back at his wife.

Her blue eyes had lost some of their sparkle as she gathered the gist of his conversation. "He's taken Elizabeth, hasn't he?"

Jack opened his mouth to try and give a comforting reply, but he knew Carter. Straightforward techno babble was what she did best. He bit his lip and decided on direct. "Yeah. However, according to Walston, Kendra Billings is still alive."

Sam sighed. "It could be worse."

Jack nodded as he put on his jacket. "I gotta go. You gonna be all right?"

Sam smiled. "We'll be fine."

"Okay," he whispered, running his fingers through his hair. His eyes darted around the living room, then focused on her as he towered over her, giving her a reassuring kiss on the forehead. His brown eyes smiled in unison with his lips. "I love you."

"Love you back," she whispered. "Now go."

Jack grabbed his gun and badge and ran out the door.

Will they make it in time? Who survives?