Hi Readers,
I know this chapter is short, but I wanted to post an update. Hopefully, you will enjoy it. Life is so upside down for the whole world right now. I've been so scattered-brained that I haven't even had the urge to write. Feeling so uncertain, frightened and just dumbfounded.
I hope this story finds all of you healthy.
Please stay safe.
Lots of love,
Jenny :)
Riley grimaced as a wave of pain hit him, forcing his eyes open. Blinking several times to focus, he finally managed to get a look at where he was. He groaned audibly as he made a move to sit up but an overwhelming shockwave of pain forced him to lie back once more. Trying to move his hands told him a harrowing story. He groaned out loud. Zip ties were not his friend at the moment and Trace knew that.
A small whimper brought his attention immediately into focus, reminding him exactly what was at stake. Janessa. In a sudden rush of adrenaline, he sat up and surveyed his surroundings. He caught sight of the little girl, blindfolded, her hands also zip-tied and sitting on the floor a few feet from him. He maneuvered so he could reach out to touch her with his foot. The terrified girl screamed in terror.
"Hey, hey, hush now, it's Riley, Nessie."
"Riley?" she whispered.
Riley shuffled closer to her. Every move he made sent shock waves of pain radiating throughout his chest. "It's me, Squirt. How are you holding up?"
"I w-wants daddy," Her lower lip trembled as tears ran down her dirt-smudged cheeks.
Riley leaned into her gently. "I know you do and he's coming…I promise, Nessie."
Riley searched his mind for a story. The little girl loved stories and fairy tales. He'd learned how easily Janessa could be distracted into thinking things were a game. He'd heard stories about how Gibbs had used it in the past, and he planned to do his best to limit the trauma to the little girl. Her imagination would protect her. "Listen to me, honey, okay?"
The little blonde nodded with a sniffle.
"I know that this feels scary but I want you to do whatever the bad guy says…"
Her small lips quivered as she shook her head. "H-he hurt…"
Riley rushed to cut off her words. He needed to divert her attention. "It's a game, sweetie…it's just pretend, okay? Your daddy is going to find us…then we win…remember when you got the keys for me?"
Janessa nodded, her lower lip trembling. "I didn't gets ice cream." Tears traced a path down her cheeks beneath her blindfold.
"It's okay, Nessie; I promise you'll get ice cream when we win. Your daddy's gonna make sure the bad guy can't play games that hurt people anymore."
"I don't wanna play this game." She dissolved into loud sobs.
Riley shivered. This wasn't going very well and Janessa was getting more and more upset.
"Hey, it's okay," he leaned into her again. "I'm here. You're okay." Janessa continued to sob, her cries escalating and getting louder
Riley puffed out his cheeks, trying hard to think of how to deescalate the little girl. He needed more time to think. He wasn't ready to face Trace again, wherever he was. He needed to figure out where they were. He needed more time.
"Hey, hey, come now, Ness, listen to me. Stop crying and listen…" he pleaded with her. He bumped into the little girl again, twisting his wrists around but feeling the plastic digging into his skin. There was no way he could break free of the ties in his injured state; under normal circumstances, he could have broken free in seconds. Trace knew there was no way Riley could summon the strength to break free, not with his ribs the way they were. A flood of memories rushed back to Riley at that moment, remembering Brody infiltrating the room only to have Abby interfere and the girls freak out. His weak attempt to intervene had only ended with Trace slamming his face into the wall. Everything went black after that.
"Janessa, the bad guy zip-tied my hands behind my back," he began to explain.
He wasn't sure it would work but Janessa might be able to help him; they'd done this before for fun. The little girl slowed her cries and sniffled, listening intently.
"He d-did?" she managed to choke out.
"Can you help me break the zip ties?"
Gibbs had gotten really upset with him a while back when he'd come home to see Aimee and Janessa with zip ties on their wrists. Riley had shown them how to use their shoelaces to break free. It had just started out as an experiment. He'd seen videos of kids doing it on YouTube, and he'd been curious to see if the girls were strong enough. It turned out to be easy for them. The two girls had thought it was a riot until Gibbs put a kibosh on the game. Both little girls had injured their wrists with the ties but still insisted on playing the game. Gibbs hid all the zip ties until they forgot about it. Riley hoped Janessa would remember.
"I gots shoes with laces," the little girl said, sniffling.
"Lay down on your back; I'll pull off your blindfold, okay?"
The little girl immediately obliged.
Riley maneuvered himself so he could pull the fabric from the child's eyes. Janessa blinked a few times in the brightness and then rewarded him with a watery smile before sitting up and setting to work to free her own hands from the zip ties. Like an expert, she threaded her lace through the tie, knotted it and started scissoring her feet until the ties snapped with little effort on her part.
"Good girl!" he praised. "Now, can you do the same with mine?"
The little girl nodded, crawled behind him and worked to slip her laces through his ties. His hands were fastened very tightly together which he imagined was Trace's way of punishing him but it would make things easier for Janessa. The tighter the tie, the easier they would snap under pressure. Riley braced himself. When Janessa began to cycle her legs, it was going to hurt like hell.
"Tell me when you're ready to move your feet," he said. He could picture her little determined face in his mind, her tongue out as she concentrated trying the lace in a knot. That part had tricked her up for days when they practiced. The little girl had had a difficult time making the knot and tying it tight.
"Knots is hard," whispered Janessa as Riley felt her fumbling around with cold hands.
"Remember it's over the first lace and then under…" he encouraged softly. "You can do it, honey…just like you did yours."
A few more minutes ticked by until Janessa heaved a sigh. "I can't gets it…" she growled.
Riley could feel her cold hands so he grabbed one gently and squeezed it. "You can do it. Take your time, baby girl…"
Janessa snatched her hands away indignantly. "I'm not a baby!"
Riley couldn't help but chuckle. Leave it to him to insult a five-year-old. He was battling a thousand when it came to people skills today. "I know you're not a baby. I know you can do it!"
He felt her go back to work and he held his breath silently cheering her on…if she could free his hands, he'd be in a better position to defend them when Trace returned.
"I gots it!" Janessa declared triumphantly.
"Good girl! Now pump your legs."
Riley gritted his teeth when Janessa began to cycle her legs quickly. Within a few moments, the ties snapped and his hands were freed.
He quickly spun around and enveloped the little girl in his arms. "You're my hero, Janessa."
He felt the little girl melt into his embrace, her small fragile body quivering. He puffed out his cheeks feeling the enormous weight on his shoulders press in. He suddenly realised how stupid his actions were. He should have trusted Gibbs instead of running off half-cocked. He hadn't thought things through and now he'd put Janessa in danger. Riley didn't even know why Trace took Janessa. He could have left her behind like Aimee. What was the guy thinking? Riley tried to chase away the gloomy thoughts that threatened to overwhelm him. Now wasn't the time to speculate. This wasn't about his fears anymore.
XxXxNCISxXxX
Tony slammed the door to his car as he double-checked messages on his phone. He hadn't missed any. He'd checked out every lead. McGee had given him some to check out but none of them had panned out. They had no clue where Michael Trace was or where he'd have taken Riley, Abby and Janessa. They were at a standstill until the lunatic reached out to them, and they were sure that was the plan. Anytime a case involved the kidnapping of a child, there was always a phone call and some kind of ransom. They were playing the dreaded waiting game now, feeling every bit at the kidnapper's mercy. Tony stood in front of one of the unidentified vehicles in Gibbs' laneway. He now knew that one belonged to Lane Brody whom they had taken into custody, but the other still remained a mystery. If it belonged to Trace then how did he manage to get away with his hostages? They had run the plates but had turned up empty-handed. The plates weren't registered to anyone in their database. That in itself was odd. Plates always belonged to someone; even discarded plates could be traced. Tony stopped and angrily pounded a fist on the trunk of the black Nissan then he frowned. He leaned in closer and put his ear to the trunk.
"Let me out!" came a familiar yet muffled voice.
"Abbs?" Could it be?
"Tony? Oh my god, Tony! Get me out of here!"
Tony rushed to the side of the car to see if the doors were locked. They were. "Hang on, Abbs, I'll get you out."
Tony took a moment to think. He knew Abby; she'd be working to free herself. If she hadn't escaped already, it meant that she'd only recently gained consciousness. He couldn't be sure how injured she was, and he didn't want to draw attention to that at the moment. He rushed up to Gibbs' bay window and knocked on it. It didn't take long before Gibbs was by his side with Aimee and Makayla in tow. Gibbs went to his garage and immediately began doing what he could to jimmy the locks. Tony was actually surprised to see Gibbs owned a Slim Jim.
Gibbs frowned. "Ness locked herself in my car," he seemed compelled to say.
Tony nodded with a chuckle. Gibbs and he had developed their own kind of communication. It felt like either one even needed to ask the question before the other answered.
"Abby, daddy will get you out," Aimee said loudly, knocking on the trunk.
Makayla stood by silently watching.
"Keep out of the way, Baby doll," said Tony, grabbing her around the waist and pulling her back. Abby was known for her hasty exits. If the Goth found a way to release the trunk before they did, it would be flying open.
Tony heard the door lock click and Gibbs rushed to pop the trunk. In a second, the trunk sprang up allowing Tony to see a sweat-soaked Abby staring up at him. Aimee rushed ahead and threw her arms around Abby.
"Are you okay?" the little girl asked, concern written all over her face.
Abby looked dishevelled with a large bruise was forming on her cheek. Tony reached down and helped Abby crawl out of the trunk. He drew her trembling form into his arms. A quick glance into the trunk told him Abby had been minutes away from escaping on her own. She'd managed to dissemble the entire trunk, giving her access to the backseat of the car.
"I'm surprised we beat ya to it," he joked lightly.
She managed a weak smile as she pulled away. "It's not as easy in the dark, DiNozzo." She punched him in the arm.
Tony cringed playfully and smiled at her.
Gibbs came up behind the Goth and pulled her into his arms in the fatherly way only Gibbs could do with the woman. Tony watched as Abby melted into the embrace. Abby had been frightened but she only allowed that fear to show for a few seconds in Papa Gibbs' arms then it disappeared as quickly as it came.
"What happened?"
XxXxNCISxXxX
Abby's pale face peeked out from under the hood of Gibbs' large USMC sweatshirt. Gibbs wrapped another blanket around the Goth's shoulders and sat beside her on the sofa as Makayla handed her a warm mug of tea. Tony held Aimee on his lap securely as the little girl snuggled into him like he was her lifeline. He hoped she'd fall asleep because the dark circles under her eyes worried him. Aimee needed some time to process what happened and sleep would help. He couldn't send her from the room with her looking the way she did. She needed comfort and support which meant they all needed to be careful what they said around her.
Gibbs watched as Makayla scurried out of the room once more, quite obviously avoiding him. He wasn't sure how to address that. There clearly would be consequences heading her way soon enough but not now. First things first. He wasn't so upset with her that she had to hide from him. Gibbs sighed, not knowing how to deal with everything all at once. He was used to multi-tasking but this was feeling overwhelming even to him.
"…the guy said he was looking for Riley…"
"Lane Brody. Riley concocted a plan to keep you busy so he could break into my safe to get my SIG," said Gibbs, not the least amused. Riley was another kid in serious trouble with him. Gibbs was wavering on his hands-off policy with the kid. There had to be a loophole for parents and guardians to kick teenage butt under extenuating circumstances, no matter what the kid had been through in his life.
"We heard a commotion in the family room, and Lane burst past me like a madman. I followed him but, Gibbs, it was all so confusing. When we came in this room, Riley was already knocked out cold and the other guy was holding Janessa in his arms." Abby's voice caught in her throat and her face paled further.
Gibbs patted her knee kindly. "It's okay, Abbs…"
"It's not!" she shouted, shivering under the blanket wrapped around her. "Nessie was screaming and he kept shaking her and telling her to shut up. It all happened so fast, Gibbs. Riley's friend lunged for the gun but the guy seemed to anticipate our every move. The bastard swung around and pistol-whipped Lane. I just stood there, Gibbs. I didn't know what else to do. I was so afraid he'd hurt Janessa."
Gibbs pulled Abby into an embrace. "It's not your fault, Abby."
Tony cleared his throat. "How long do you think, Boss?"
Gibbs glanced at his watch, thinking. "Not long now."
"For what?" piped up Aimee, looking sleepy in Tony's lap.
"Until you fall asleep, Squirt," said Tony, bumping his knee up suddenly
Aimee yawned as more tears rolled down her cheeks. "Will he hurt Janessa?"
Gibbs shook his head. "No, honey. The kidnapper wants something, so he won't hurt your sister. How about you go with Abby and put your pyjamas on? You too, Abbs. Get into something more comfortable."
"Gibbs," Abby protested.
Gibbs tightened his embrace and caught Abby's eye contact. He really needed to talk to Tony alone with Aimee listening. He hoped that Abby would understand that. Gibbs stood up, lifting Abby to her feet in one fluid movement. Abby looked as tired as Aimee; he was going to pull the dad card on both of them.
"No arguments from either one of you," he growled.
Tony stood to his feet, sliding Aimee to the floor. "Your dad's right, Baby doll. Sleep is what you both need right now."
Abby's face reddened in indignation, alerting Gibbs to the fact that the Goth was too distraught to catch his nonverbals. He knew Abby wasn't herself. She knew much more than she was able to tell him at the moment but she'd told him enough for now. Gibbs leaned into Abby and whispered, "Please, Abbs, I need you to take Aimee out of the room so I can talk with Tony alone."
Gibbs felt Abby relax in his arms. She understood now. It wasn't so much about her as it was about Aimee. They all needed to spare the little girl more trauma.
Aimee burst into tears and threw herself into Gibbs' arms. "No, daddy. I don't want to go to bed until Janessa is back. Please, daddy."
Gibbs drew the little girl into his arms and hugged her tightly. "No one said anything about going to bed. I just want you to get into your pyjamas. Abby had a very scary time. She needs you to cooperate with her and then you can both come back downstairs."
Aimee shook her head, not at all willing to comply.
Abby reached out to try and take Aimee from Gibbs' arms but it was to no avail. The child clung to Gibbs' neck with a chokehold grip. There was no way Aimee was letting go of her dad.
"I'll handle things, Gibbs and let you know," reassured Tony heading towards the foyer and tossing Gibbs a look of sympathy. "McGee's got a tap…just answer your phone when it rings."
Gibbs puffed out his cheeks. How often had he given a similar command to sit tight and wait? It seemed like Karma was biting him in the ass. He knew he'd been more than a bastard to families in the past. It seemed fitting that he enjoy the same fate.
