Vacation

24 hours ago…

"Ok. Goodbye for the week." AJ smiled, hanging up the telephone after her last call for the day, leaning back on her chair with triumph. She was so thankful to finally make it to the end of the day, and to be able to leave with all her work complete and head into her vacation week with her husband.

She stood up and cleared up her desk, switching the computer off, cleaning everything up since she knew she'd be gone for the week.

"Knock knock." Joey said, knocking on the door of AJ's office as AJ looked up and forced a smile. She was not going to miss having him come into her office every day to small talk to her about work. She'd gotten over the awkwardness thankfully, and was getting used to him being around, but it was still very annoying.

"Hey." AJ smiled.

"Ahh, you got that happy I'm going on vacation look." Joey nodded.

"I do?" AJ questioned, throwing her cell phone and her wallet into her purse, "Maybe because I am." She smiled, "A week away from this place has been a long time coming." She shook her head.

"Yeah, don't rub it in." Joey smiled.

"I was so happy about finishing up for vacation that I stayed a whole extra half hour later. Don't say I'm not a good worker." She shook her head.

"A whole half hour." Joey nodded, looking at the clock, "Yeah everyone is gone. No one hangs around on a Friday night." He said.

"Yeah I bet all those interns on the seventh floor split as soon as they can." AJ said, "I pass by them every morning coming in and I swear every single one of them was holding an iced coffee." She shook her head, "I like iced coffee, but every morning?" She questioned as he chuckled.

She was in a good mood. Excited to go home and switch off from work for a week. Excited to escape with her husband for a week and relax.

"I guess you're just not down with the kids." Joey said.

"Well… my kids aren't kids anymore so, I don't really have to be." AJ shrugged.

"You got plenty of grandkids to learn from." Joey said.

"That is true. They're all tiny, though." AJ waved her hand, putting her coat on, flicking her hair out from the coat as Joey watched with a smile, "So… I am going to log out of my email dress on my phone. So if there's a real emergency about anything, call or text me." She shrugged, "But… also, please don't." She joked as he smiled.

"Got it." Joey nodded, watching her lift her purse and head for the door where he was standing. He placed his hand behind his back, hovering it around the area as AJ reached for the door handle.

"I guess I'll see you in a week then." AJ nodded to him, opening the door when she felt something hard poke at the small of her back.

"Close the door." Joey told her as AJ paused, feeling him press whatever he was holding, harder into her back.

"W-What… what are you doing?" She questioned.

"I said close the door." Joey ordered as AJ gulped.

She looked outside of the office where all the other offices were in darkness. She closed the door over slowly.

"What are you doing?" AJ asked, feeling her insides shaking. She knew what was being pressed against her back. She could feel the shape.

"Walk back to your desk and sit behind it." Joey told her.

"Joey-" She began, suddenly hearing the sound of a loading gun, shutting her eyes with fright, feeling her heart palpitate in her chest rapidly, "Ok." She nodded calmly, sitting her purse down and keeping her hands up.

"Walk." Joey nodded, pressing the gun into her back, nudging her forward as she walked back to her desk slowly.

"Why are you doing this?" AJ questioned.

"Sit behind the desk." Joey told her as AJ walked around the desk, finally getting a look at him in front of her as she saw the gun pointed at her, the expression on his face once an overly friendly chatterbox, now a psychopath with a loaded weapon.

"Ok." AJ nodded calmly, keeping her hands up and sitting down behind her desk, "Just… whatever it is you need or… whatever you want, we can… we can talk about it. You don't have to… hurt me." She said.

"It just makes me feel better." Joey nodded with a smile as she looked at him, "Get some paper out of your desk, and a pen." He told her as AJ looked at him with confusion, "A paper and pen. Go." He pointed the gun at her as AJ reached into her drawer for some paper and pen.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" AJ shook her head.

"Ok. This is what I want you to write." He nodded, "Phil at the top." He pointed the gun to the paper as AJ looked at him.

"N-No… no, I'm not… I'm not doing anything you tell me. What the hell is this?" AJ stood up as Joey smiled, "Why are you pointing a gun at me, Joey?!" She questioned.

"I knew you'd be like this." Joey rolled his eyes, "Ok, either sit down and do what I tell you or your daughter dies." He said as AJ looked at him, "The young one. She clocks out of the police station at 7pm tonight. I got two guys outside her house waiting for her. She's dead in seconds." He nodded as AJ looked at him.

"What the hell are you talking about?!" AJ exclaimed.

"I'm talking about little Chase growing up without a mom. I don't think I can make myself much clearer." He nodded as AJ looked across at him, "And in case you think I'm just bluffing, here's a picture of my associates outside her house right now." He said, taking his phone out and showing her the picture as AJ looked, noticing it was indeed outside Cassie's house.

"What is wrong with you?" AJ spat.

"So… sit back down and write what I tell you, or bury your daughter in a cemetery." Joey nodded as AJ gulped, sitting down on her chair as Joey smiled, "Good girl." He whispered as AJ took the pen.

"What am I writing?" AJ spat.

"Phil at the top." Joey said as AJ wrote Phil with a shaky hand, "I need a little bit of time on my own right now." Joey nodded, waving the gun back and forth as he decided what he wished for the note to say.

"I don't think I do." AJ spat.

"Remember when I told you I'd literally have your daughter killed?" Joey smiled, kneeling down in front of the desk, leaning his arms on the desk, keeping the gun pointed at her, "Write it." He told her as AJ glared at him, scribbling down what he had said, "I'm sorry for springing this on you without talking about it." He continued as AJ shook her head, writing more down.

"He will never buy this in a million years." AJ shook her head.

"Work has been stressful and I just need some space." Joey added as AJ looked at him, scribbling down the words, "I love you." He smiled, tapping the paper with the gun as AJ took a deep breath, writing the only real and true words down on the note, "Finish it with April."

"I don't know what it is you're doing but it's not gonna work. My husband will not buy this note." She assured him. She was trying to stay calm and strong on the outside, but she was shaking with fear on the inside.

"Take everything out of your bottom drawers." He told her.

"Why?" AJ shook her head.

"Just do it!" Joey yelled as AJ jumped.

She opened up her bottom drawers, taking out the paper work and some folders.

"You're gonna get caught. Whatever it is you're doing… whatever it is you want. You'll get caught." AJ nodded, swallowing the lump in her throat.

"No I won't." Joey shook his head, "Ok, take this stuff with you." He nodded as AJ picked up some of the paper work, "We're going for a little car ride." He nodded as AJ gulped, walking out from behind the desk and towards the door slowly as he followed her.

Her instincts told her to just run. She saw the door and she saw her exit. She was terrified for her safety. She had no idea what he was after or what he was going to do and she just wanted to run into the arms of safety.

She dropped the paper work, running for the door, not realising how close he was to her, grabbing the door handle as he grabbed her by the hair, causing her to wince.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." He spat against her face, keeping a fistful of her hair as she tried to breathe calmly, "Now pick all of that stuff up that you dropped." He told her, releasing her hair as AJ crouched down, whimpering a little as she collected the paper work up, feeling him staring down at her.

She wasn't in the same headspace she used to be in when she was younger, where she could fight her way out or think quickly. She was scared. Terrified.

"What do you want from me?" AJ pleaded, picking up her things and standing up as he looked at her, noticing her tears.

"I just need you to listen to me." He assured her as she looked at him. She was terrified of how calm he was being. As if it was natural to point a gun at him, to threaten her daughter against her, to treat her like this.

"But what do you want?" AJ shook her head, "Please… just don't hurt anyone." She begged. She couldn't take any more people coming into her life and hurting her family.

"I won't if you do what I tell you." Joey nodded, "Don't cry." He whispered, placing the gun against her cheek as she flinched, feeling him run it down her neck, down her chest, between her breasts as she stepped back.

"Stop." AJ spat.

"Come on, we're going for a little car ride." He nodded, nudging her forward, looking at the office to make sure it looked ok, leaving it and closing the door behind him.

"Where are you taking me?" AJ questioned, walking ahead as Joey walked behind her.

"You'll see." Joey said, getting into the elevator with her, keeping his gun raised as AJ tried to keep a cool head.

They eventually reached the parking lot where AJ saw a man standing beside her car.

"W-What… who is that?" AJ questioned.

"He's gonna drive your car." Joey said, finding AJ's keys in her purse and throwing them over to the man, "You're coming with me." He said, pushing AJ towards his car as AJ walked on ahead.

"Tell me my daughter is safe. Tell me my family is safe." She turned to him as he looked at her.

He sighed with inconvenience, taking his phone out and calling the men outside Cassie's house, "Alright, you can leave. Leave the house." He spoke on the phone as AJ watched, "And don't go back." He made clear as AJ looked at him, watching as he hung up.

"And the rest of my family." AJ said bravely as he looked at her.

"Do what I say, no one will go near them." Joey looked at her, "Just get in the car." He said opening up the door as AJ gulped. She didn't know where he was taking her or what he was going to do to her. She'd been so terrified in her life, and yet, it was never something she could ever control or prepare for. The fear was always so strong. And she feared for her life as she got into the car.