Chapter 28: Big Fail

"AARON! LET US OUT!", Dolly demanded pounding on the door. Dylan stood by watching his sister senselessly banging on the safe room's door.

He'd never ever seen his sister this distraught before, but he couldn't blame her because of the predicament they were in. Depending on how long they've been waiting something bad must've happened to both of their parents and Aaron. Geez...He'd never felt so helpless before in his life. He hated this feeling of not being able to do something.

All of their younger siblings were unnaturally calm about everything. Maybe they didn't know what was going on. Dylan did a head count of every single one before stopping, "Wait, Where's DJ?", He asked all of them.

Nobody answered, but all the puppies called out for DJ and searched. The room was really crowded so it was hard to tell if he was in their or not. Dolly gave up on attempting to get the door to budge.

She caught sight of Diesel desperately trying to nibble on his right leg. She then realized that the floor underneath them wasn't tiles or wood, but plain dirt. Something that you could easily dig through. An idea suddenly struck her.

"Diesel!", She called.

The cross eyed pup gazed up at her tilting his head.

"Dig!", she pointed at the ground beneath everyone's feet.

His head shot up and his tail wagged. He got on all fours using his hands to dig quickly in the dirt. Within seconds Diesel had already dug a huge hole in the Earth underneath the house.

"Everybody! Follow Diesel!", Dolly demanded. Without asking their older sibling any questions all of the youngest siblings stampeded down the gaping hole in the ground.

"What are you waiting for Dylan?", Dolly angrily asked her brother who watched everybody follow Diesel.

"But Mom and Dad said-"

"COME ON!, We don't have any time for this right now!"

He jumped at her sudden mood swing. He willingly went down the man-made hole following not too far after his siblings. Dolly was determined to get back her parents and the love of her life.

Cruella wasn't gonna get away with any of this. It's either they're gonna get everyone back or die trying.

-To Anna-

"So are you that same lady that took me and Dad?", Anna asked the voice. She took a bite of a cold cut sandwich that was delivered to her by one of the stranger's henchmen. While the time Anna spent there the person on the speakers had actually bonded and spoke with her just a little bit.

It seemed like Anna was being treated instead like a princess instead of tortured like a prisoner.

"Me and Cruella aren't the same person just so you know, but in time me and you will meet face to face."

"Cruella? Who's that and What's she doing here?", Anna asked over a full mouth of food.

"Let's just say she's a little too fond of dog fur, but I could care less what her and Hunter's motives are. My reason for being here in the first place is Aaron and that father of yours."

Anna couldn't think of a valid reason of why this stranger so hell-bent on getting Aaron and her father?

"How do you even know Aaron? What did he do to you to make you hate him so much", She interrogated hoping she made the voice feel remorse for their actions.

There was a brief pause and moment of silence and no response came from the voice in the speakers.

"...I'm surprised you and everyone else haven't taken the hint yet."

"Huh? What hint are you talking about?", Anna put down the sandwich listening closely.

"I'm Aaron's Mother..."

"W-what?", Anna stuttered her eyes widening. The sandwich fell out of Anna's hands which were frozen in shock. The sandwich plopped on the floor bread, lettuce, tomato, and ham stained the ground.

I parked the car next to the massive ship that floated in the water next to the dock. This was the same ship where those five police officers died.

"The Homestead" was what had printed in a bold text font on both sides of the massive ship. This place has god awful security it wasn't hard at all to follow that purple van here.

"DJ I need you to keep that gun close.", I warned. He pulled out the glock 17 keeping a firm grip on the fire arm. "Stay close to me."

We carefully, but quietly climbed up the rope that was tied to the bridge of the boat. Once I made it onto the ship I checked to see DJ's progress. He appeared to be struggling to hold onto the rope.

"Help I'm slipping!", He pleaded.

I immediately took action taking his furry hand into my own using all my strength to pull him up. After basically saving his life from falling to death I smiled and patted him on the back. "You all good DJ?"

"Yeah, but I'll feel even better when we rescue our parents and Anna.", He nodded. I feel the exact same way at the moment. There was double door in front of us.

"Let's be careful when we're in here.", I told DJ with a stern tone. I pushed open the double door and luckily for us the door was unlocked. I thought this would be hard, but it was easy...almost a little too easy.

We entered a large dark ominous room and left the door open. I whipped out my phone turning on the flashlight. I waved my phone around to take in my surroundings.

"This must be the control room...", I thought seeing buttons and levers of all kinds skattered on the walls of the ship.

SLAM!

Me and DJ jumped in surprise after hearing the door we left open slam shut. I was blinded temporarily by a sudden burst of white light from the ceiling.

"AARON!!!", I heard DJ call for my attention. I quickly turned around to see a male human wearing armor had DJ pinned to the ground with his foot on the young dalmatian's back. I tried to go for the gun on that DJ dropped onto the ground.

But...the last thing I remember was feeling a hard strike to the back of my head before everything became a dark. I got to my knees as my vision blurring.

-3rd person transition-

DJ helplessly watched as this strange woman knocked Aaron unconscious with a wooden bat. A loud crack echoed througb the room and he collapsed to the floor with a hard thud. This woman wasn't Cruella de Vil he could tell that much.

The woman was about the same height as her, but looked way younger and not skinny and old like Cruella. She had a porcelain skin tone, brown eyes, and jet black hair that went down to her waist. She wore a crimson red tuxedo with a black t-shirt underneath, red pants with red high heels.

"What did you do to him?!", DJ asked his voice shaking.

"Oh nothing much, he'll be back up and running in a about an hour. That's just about enough time I need to prepare for our little get together.", She rambled stroking the sleeping teen's cheeks.

She then gave DJ the widest and most creepiest smile he'd ever seen from anybody before. "You must be DJ. Anna has told me so much about you. You must be concerned about your little girlfriend."

DJ tried to brush off the woman's teasing remarks. "Take him to Anna.", She ordered to her henchman. He took his foot off DJ's back and binded the kids arms together.

"Get up!", The masked male demanded in a threatening manner.

Out of fear of getting hurt himself DJ complied and got to his feet giving Aaron's still body one last look before being escorted out of the room.

Anna was huddled in a corner of the room she was being held captive in. She had her knees tucked into her chest while rocking back and forth.

Her ears caught the sound of metallic clanking behind the metal door. The door slid open and she watched someone get tossed inside. She gasped before crawling over to the stranger. "Hey are you ok?", she shook him hoping he wasn't badly injured or possibly dead.

"Anna?", She noticed the floppy ears, white fur and black spots.

"DJ!!!"

The young girl wrapped the dalmatian into a bear hug weeping with joy and sorrow. "I'm so glad you're ok! Where's everyone else?", She asked suddenly wanting to know everyone's wherabouts.

"It was just me and Aaron, but...", He broke eye contact from her with a look of regret. "I should've done something. Now that crazy woman has him."

"It's not your fault.", Anna whispered in his ear continuing to embrace him. "Know that you're here we should try and find a way out of here...together." , she finished holding his hands giving him a heartwarming grin.

"Yeah.", He agreed.

Now all they had to do was find a way to get out of their prison and get Aaron, their parents, and escape.