Part 4

"Sorry to keep you waiting." said Kerry, coming into the Lounge.
"That's ok. Gave me some time to think. So, what's happening?" asked Kate curiously standing up. Kerry motioned for her to sit back down and she did so, Kerry sitting opposite her.
"They've found Carter."
"Is he ok?" asked Kate anxiously.
"He's fine, at the moment." There was silence in the room. Kate looked up at Kerry. "Excuse me?"
"He's fine." confirmed Kerry, not wanting to give the whole story.
"No, wait, you said 'At the moment.' What about in the next thirty seconds? Are you suggesting that John's being tortured?" said Kate, her accent rising with each word in fear.
"Woah, woah, let's not jump to conclusions." said Kerry trying to comfort Kate.
"No, look Kerry I want the whole story and I want it now!" demanded Kate, her eyes glazed over with tears which were ready to fall if she let them.
"Ok, hold on. I'll start from the beginning."

~*~*~*~

"So, you said they only came once a day to check on you?" asked Carter, getting his facts straight.
"Oh, twice. Just at twelve to give us food. They came at midnight and at noon yesterday." said the girl with the dirty bandage on her arm now known as Crystal. "Ok, so then when they dropped me off here, that would be the last time you would see them till tonight?"
"Uhuh. What's the plan Doc, you haven't told us yet." said Martin impatiently.
"Hold on a sec, your getting ahead of me here. How do know no one is around?" asked Carter.
"We don't. That's why we haven't left this room."
"So, then, for all we know, there may be guards outside this room?"
"Look, Doc, we don't know anything about guards. But I can tell you one thing- It's gonna be hell getting out of here." advised Martin, Crystal nodding in agreement. As the other younger Children are reminded of this fate, they all looked helplessly at Carter.
"Ok, ok, I agree but we can't get ahead of ourselves. Before we do anything, we better be well prepared." Suddenly, the man returned. This time with a friend...

~*~*~*~

"So John is being held hostage in Indianapolis, in a school which has over five hundred children locked up, in various rooms by kidnappers." said Kate slowly.
"That's what we know so far." said Kerry, nodding sadly as Kate went through the facts. She sighed. Looking down, Kerry noticed a tear drop off Kate's cheek and onto her had where she wiped it away angily.
"I shouldn't have taken that extra shift." said Kate sobbing. "If I hadn't then perhaps the kidnapper would have left him alone. Maybe we would have gone out to dinner instead of the cafeteria and it's, it's just all my fault"
"Oh, Kate. I could blame myself for even offering you the job. No one's to blame much less you." said Kerry gently rubbing Kate's shoulder to calm her down.
"I know, I know, I just help feeling guilty. He even begged me not to take the shift and, and I made him go get Cherry." said Kate begging to calm down.
Suddenly the Lounge door opened.
"Dr Hobart, here's the results you asked for." said Frank, walking towards Kate and handing her a light pink slip of computer paper. Kate sat back down on the couch and folded the paper in half, looking up the whole time. Kerry looked curiously at the slip, wondering what it was but didn't say anything.
"Page me if you need anything, ok?"
"Yeah, I'll be fine. Don't worry."
"No patients." advised Kerry limping slowly out the door.
"I know, Dr Weaver, I'll be fine."
"See ya."
"See ya." said Kate to the back of the Lounge door. Kerry had already left, a nurse yelling for her attention.
She sighed. Re-opening the tightly folded pink piece of paper, Kate closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Looking down to read a result that she already knew and felt. Positive. She was pregnant.

~*~*~*~

"Planing to escape, huh?" said the man with a thick, black beard. He was short, muscular and seemed to me from Italian origins.
Carter just stared back up at his eyes, not answering.
"What's wrong, cat got your tongue?" suggested the clean shaven man behind him. He had a suite, tie and carried a brown suite case in his right hand. Unlike all the other kidnappers, this one was much cleaner and seemed to be the boss.
"What do you think, Boss, chuck him and his little friends in the dungeon?" said the Italian guy."
"Yeah, just Doc here and girly and her boyfriend." advised the boss, pointing to Carter, Crystal and Martin.
Crystal was starring at the 'Boss' with pur hatred in her eyes. "He's not my boyfriend you bloody dick head." she yelled.
"Feisty little one." said the 'Boss', slapping her face. "Lock 'em up and I'll deal with them latter."
"Yes master." 'So I was right.' thought Carter to himself as He was being tied up with some thick orange rope. 'He is the boss.'
"Also, make sure that the note to his lover get's sent."
"I will." agreed the bearded man. And with that, the 'Boss' turned and walked out the room, Carter, Crystal and Martin being pushed roughly out the door. He may have been short, but by no means was he weak.
John looked apologetically at the group of children he had to leave behind as the trio were being kicked and pushed out the door.

~*~*~*~

Kate looked at the paper. "I knew it. I, I just did." she said to herself. However, this piece of paper just seemed to confirm it all. "Oh God, I gotta get out of here." said Kate. She scrunched the slip in anger and frustration and threw it into the waste bin by the door, not caring if she missed, picked up her jacket and rushed out the door tears welling up behind her eyes again. She ran past the desk yelling at Randi. "Tell Dr Weaver that I had to leave and to call if they found anything out."
"Uhuh." said Randi, watching in curiosity as Kate fled from the ER.
"John , I need you here." she whispered to herself as ran, the wind wiping her hair into her eyes.

~*~*~*~

The three were taken out of the large science lab and down several corridors. Carter tried to peak in one of the many classrooms as they walked past, but the man wouldn't stand for it. He got a sharp slap in the face. Wincing, John ducked back behind Martin. However, he did get a look. He saw another group of children, all scared, crouched together in a corner by the teachers desk. Carter felt so sorry for them and as he looked down, a lone tear dropped from his eyes. His whole being itched to help them, but knew it was no use. 'I've gotta wait for the right time. The only problem is when will be the right time?' he said to himself as the man stopped by a red door that had a large metal bolt in place, double guarded by a second pad-lock.
"Here we are, the Ritz." said the man snickering.
pushing them all in the dark room, he locked the door shut and left the trio in the dark, scared and helplessly tied up.
"Wait till the Boss comes. He'll know what to do with you." he said as he bolted the door and dangled the key's teasingly as Carter heard footsteps walking down the hall
leaving them alone.

~*~*~*~

Kate ran up the step's to her apartment block, suddenly feeling very tired, puffed out and noticing that running wasn't helping any. Walking slowly up the stairs, she found herself outside the kindly old Mrs Spindle's door. 'Maybe I get to see Cherry.' thought Kate to herself as she sniffled and wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her jacket. Looking unintentionally at her watch, Kate noticed that it was four in the morning. Immediately regretting the fact that she had knock on the door at so early in the morning, she turned back to continue up her way to her apartment. But before she could even make it to the stairs, Mrs Spindle had already opened the door.
"Miss Hobart?"
"Oh. I'm sorry to bother you at such an early hour, I'd better..."
"No bother. I up at this hour everyday anyway." said the kindly old woman who beckoned Kate to enter with her chubby but welcoming hand.
Kate silently walked through the door her head bent down as she thanked the lady.
Mrs Spindle's home was the same size and design as Kate's apartment but looked much more homey than Kate's plain white mostly empty apartment. Her walls were a beautiful pale blue colour and was adorned with landscapes of what seemed to be a farm and many portraits photographs.
"I'll go put a kettle on dear, make yourself as home." said Mrs Spindle as she directed Kate to the over stuffed-very comfy looking couch.
"Thankyou." said Kate sitting down.
Mrs Spindle came back, a large old looking silver tray laden down with tea, biscuits and coffie.
"Oh Mrs Spindle, you really shouldn't have." said Kate helping the old woman to put the tray down on the table .
"Call me Katrina. I have to pamper someone once in a while."
Mrs Spindle, now known as Katrina poured tea for both and handed a cup to Kate.
"Miss Hobart-"
"Kate."
"Ok , Kate, it's great having you here, but I also noticed that must have been more than a friendly visit." said Katrin as she watched Kate slowly sip her hot drink.
"Well, one reason was to get Cherry, but I'm starting to think that perhaps he's sleeping." Kate said, trying to think of a reasonable reason to say why she was there at four in the morning.
"Yes, I've never seen a dog sleep so soundly."
"Well, Cherry-Ripe is, ah, deaf in his right ear."
"Oh, I'm sorry." said Katrin, sensing how close Kate and Cherry were. "Well, I'm sorry but I'm still not convinced. Is there something else?"
"Yeah." whispered Kate softly. "John has gone missing. He's been kidnapped, I'm just so worried."
"John is your..."
"Boy-friend. I still think that it's my fault even if not directly." said Kate sadly, putting her head down to stare at the deep brown liquid.
"Oh.Well, you should know that it's not your fault."
"How would you know?" aid Kate, not lifting up her head.
"Oh, I know. Trust me. Want another cup?" offered Katrin.
"No than-" suddenly a beeping sounded from her jeans pocket. Reaching in it to find a small pager, Kate looked at the window and found a 'triple' zero.
"Do you mind if I could borrow your phone?"
"No, no of course not." said Katrin, directing Kate towards the white slim-line telephone which Kate hurriedly dialed with shaking fingers.
"Hurry up, Hurry up, Hurry up!" she whispered to herself as she imagined all the things that they could be paging her for.
"Ah hello, can I speak to Dr Weaver?"

~*~*~*~

"Shit, shit, shit!" yelled Martin as he repeatedly kicked the door in frustration.
"Hey!" said Carter. It was pitch black in the room and even though he felt scared, hopeless and knew without seeing that Crystal was about to cry, Carter tried his best to get Martin out of his violent mood and to stop assaulting the door.
"I feel like kicking the door too, man and then telling the 'Boss' to kiss my ass and to go fuck himself but I gotta pull myself together and you do to man, we got kids to save." He reasoned, trying to calm the angry teen down.
"You don't know shit man! You promised..."
"I did not promise anything." said Carter. "I can't make any promises that I'm sure I can keep; nobody can."
Martin began to quieten down and hung his head in shame.
"But there is one promise I can make." said Carter, lifting Martin's chin up to face his dark shadow.
"That would be try my absolute best to get everyone out of this mess."
"How can you be so sure your gonna even make it out of this room alive?' came a voice from behind the bolted door...

~*~*~*~

"Dr weaver?" said Kate uncertainly as she approached the fiery redhead at the desk.
"Oh, Kate, your here. Great! The police really need to speak to you." said Kerry, turning around.
"Why?"
"Well, I, maybe you should ask them." said Kerry, not wanting to give the bad news away as she lead Kate towards the Lounge.
"Kate, this is officer Patterson, Officer Patterson this is Kate Hobart."
"Pleasure." said Patterson, offering his bulky hand and gesturing for Kate to sit down. He was a heavily built man- not fat just, heavy. He had a hair cut which looked like it was too short and a beard which was a weird unatural-orangy looking colour.
"Miss Hobart-"
"Kate."
"Kate," said the officer starting again. "Did you know a 'Sigfred Hofman' back from Australia?"
"Uh, no. No, I don't." said Kate curiously, wondering where this line of questioning was going.
"Does the name 'Harry Hofman' ring a bell?" suggested Patterson, leaning forward as he tried to gauge Kate's reaction.
"No... no your joking..." said Kate, her eyes beginning to grow round with fear. 'No. Not him. No. My fault!'
"Have you heard of him?" she persisted.
"He's dead- he is, I know he is..."
"Kate, you've got to calm down." said Kerry, rubbing Kate's back soothingly as Kate's eye's began to fill with tears for the third time. "Give Officer Patterson time to explain."
Kate nodded in agreement.
"He's the one behind the operation. Hofman is angered over the death of his brother and has chosen young Dr Carter here to take it all out. Are you in someway related to this man?"
"Yea-yeah, He almost rap.. raped me." stuttered Kate as Kerry looked suprised at the news.
"Well, there's our connection. Do you have the number for the detective that was working on your case?" asked the Officer, his face widening in a grin as he watched Kate try desperately to forget what she had been told.
"No."
"Kate, we need the number."
"It's in my locker." said Kate as she shakily up from her seat. Her head was shaking in disbelief as she backed out of the Lounge and almost bumped into Mailk.
"Kate... Kate?" asked Kerry getting up to follow.
"I- I really got... got to go." she said before bolting towards the electric sliding doors and running out into the sprinkling snow which had just began to fall. It was freezing but Kate didn't feel the falling temperature as she ran, not caring where she was going, not caring if she froze to death. No Jacket, not remembering anything except that she was responsible. Responsible for John's kidnap...

~*~*~*~

"Who is it?" came Carter's anxious voice. He knew who it was, but he had to make sure. Martin gave him a slight kick on the ankle as if to say. 'Why did you ask that?'
A half-hearted chuckle came from the other side of the door. The trio could see a black, ugly shadow rock from side to side, blocking a fair amount of the faint light that had managed to creep under the door.
"Thought you'd know who I was by now."
Everyone stayed silent. Crystal had lost her tears in fright and she too stood like the others waiting to see what the 'Boss' would do next.
"Everybody alright?" he said in a sickly sweet tone.
"Were're fine. What are you going to do with us? Let us out!" yelled Martin.
"Oh, oh what a feisty temper we have here." said the man, beginning to chuckle again. Carter gave Martin a tap on the shoulder to remind him of what they had to do.
"Well, I don't know." Boss paused again and then, it was if they could feel the smile work it's way across his mouth.
"Alright. everybody out." He said in an overly cheerful tone.
The door was unbolted and thrown open. Crystal, Martin and Carter stumbled out, not yet use to the brightness after being in the dark for a long time. To his surprise, Carter felt several pairs of hands tie his arms behind his back and roughly push a gag around his mouth. He struggled to breath, the gagged smelled of manure and was covering a part of his nose.
The three struggled, screamed lame screams and kicked for all it was worth but were held down. Finally being able to see where they were being taken, Carter noticed that they were travelling down another corridor.
This time they were taken to the bathrooms. Each prisoner was pushed into a room. Crystal to the Ladies and Martin and John into the Men's...

~*~*~*~