Disclaimers: I do not own or lay claim to Walker, Texas Ranger or the characters Walker, Gage, Sydney, Trivette or Alex. This was written for entertainment purposes only.
Search Party Part 4
Chapter 13: Copy Center
Walker and Trivette had headed to the copy center that the letter to the governor was faxed from with the hope of finding someone who had seen a black van and the men who came in it. Though it seemed like a long shot, if it brought the two senior rangers any closer to finding their colleagues, then it would be worth it.
"Hello Rangers," the woman behind the counter said as the men walked through the door, "something I can help you boys with? Need something copied or faxed?"
"Actually," Trivette piped up, "we need some information about some people who faxed something from here to the governor's office early this morning."
"Well, we open at 5 AM, and there has only been one fax today," the woman said as she shuffled through some scatter sheets of paper on the counter. "Ahh," she said as she found the slip she was looking for. She handed the paper to Walker as she said, "Is this the number to the governor's office?"
After quickly looking at the number Walker responded, "Yeah, this is it. Do you know the men who had something faxed to this number?"
"I had never seen them before but they said they would be back."
Walker and Trivette would have planned a stake out at the copy center if they were sure that Sydney and Gage would not be harmed before the next letter was sent. However, since this hope could not be promised, both rangers thought about other alternatives that might bring them to the kidnappers quicker.
Finally, Walker spoke, "Do you have surveillance cameras?"
"Yea, we do." The woman answered.
"Could we have this mornings tape?" Trivette asked.
"Of course," the woman said as she ran into the back room. Moments later, she came back out and handed the rangers the video tape.
"Thanks." Trivette said.
Hoping that the tape might help them unlock the mystery of whom the kidnappers were, the two rangers headed back to headquarters.
Chapter 14: Gage and Sydney's Prison
Sydney and Gage were beginning to orchestrate an escape plan. The way the two rangers saw the situation was, if one of them had a chance to escape and get help, it might be the only plausible way to try and save the pair. Though Sydney did not like the idea of leaving Gage alone and unarmed, she saw no other way of them escaping. Her only hope was to escape and get back with help before their captors ever noticed she had left.
"Are you ready for this, Shorty?" Gage asked Sydney trying to lighten the mood.
Sydney half smiled at the pet name Gage was using for her as she said, "Don't call me that, Francis and boost me up before I change my mind."
Gage lifted himself from the cot and walked over to where Sydney was standing underneath the window. Sydney hooked her fingers on the window sill waiting for Gage to offer his hand for her to step on so that she could quickly open the window and jump out. Much to her surprise, instead of offering his hand for her to step on, Gage instead put his hand on her shoulder.
Sydney whipped her head around to look at him and said, "What? What's wrong?"
Gage turned her around and pulled her into an embrace. "Just in case you don't get back in time," he whispered, "know that I really care about you, Syd."
Sydney looked at Gage in amazement. Then, without thinking, she put her hands around his neck and pulled him into a gentle kiss. "I will get back in time, Francis," she said as she broke the kiss. She then placed her hands on the window sill again as Gage offered his palm for her to stand on.
Just as Sydney was about to open the window, the door at the top of the stairs creaked open. The two rangers stared at each other wondering how they were going to not only escape but one other key fact.
"Our handcuffs," Gage quietly said to Sydney as he grabbed her around the waist pulling her away from the window just as two of their captors came into view as they tramped down the stairs.
Chapter 15: Ranger Headquarters
Walker and Trivette rushed back to ranger headquarters hoping that something on the surveillance tape from the copy center might bring them closer to finding their fellow rangers. Just as Trivette was about to press play on the tape, Alex came into the Company B office to see if the men had come up with any new leads.
"Did you guys find anything?" Alex asked.
"We have a surveillance tape from the copy center." Trivette answered.
"Will that help us at all?"
"Well," Walker began, "when I looked at where the camera was positioned near the door, I could see that it shown a little of the parking lot. So if we are lucky, we can get a glimpse of the kidnappers getting out of a black van and hopefully run it through the police database and find a name."
The three watched the tape in fast forward and, sure enough as Walker had mentioned, they were able to see two men getting out of a black van that was caught on the tape.
"Stop!" Walker shouted to Trivette. "We have a good glimpse of their faces there. Get this tape down to intelligence and get the picture. Then find us a name to go with it." At that point, Trivette snagged the tape from the VCR and ran out the office door on his errand.
"Think Gage and Sydney are still okay, Walker?" Alex asked.
"We are going to find them." Walker said adamantly. "The question is, can we find them in time?"
Chapter 16: The Cellar where Gage and Sydney are
"Hey!" One of the captors shouted towards their prisoners. "What is going on here?"
At this point, Gage had pulled Sydney into a hug with his back to the men hoping that they wouldn't notice that they were no longer confined to handcuffs. "I am just hugging my wife." Gage said in a matter of fact tone.
Sydney played along knowing that if they could get their captors minds confused enough, they would be able to get the better of them and take them down. "What do you want from us?"
"Listen lady," Ned, one of the captors began, "we are just doing our jobs so stop whining. Come on, you two are going outside for the day." At this point, he grabbed Gage's shoulder and pushed him into the wall. He then immediately grabbed Sydney and held a gun to her head as he pushed her up the stairs.
"You too," Greg the other captor who had come in with Ned said as he pointed a gun at Gage. "And I swear I will shoot her if you do anything stupid. So don't try it." He yelled at Gage as he prodded him up the stairs.
The two men took the pair outside in the back yard and over to a 6 foot barbed wire fence. Next to the fence were two relatively tall metal poles with a hook on each of them. "We used to tie the dogs to these, but for today, the dogs won't mind if you use them." Ned said as he laughed at his buddy. "Hey Greg, weren't these two cuffed before?"
It was at this point that Sydney and Gage noticed they would have the best chance of getting away. At the same exact time, the two rangers each began to fight the man closest to them. The men put up a little bit of a fight, but Gage and Sydney were able to take them down with some choice kicks and punches. The two rangers forced the men to their feet and began to walk back towards the house to find a phone and call for assistance.
All of a sudden a shot rang out and both rangers turned around to see their two other captors along with two other men they had never seen before holding a blonde woman against her will as she tried to struggle to get away.
"I don't know who you two are," Carl, the captor with the gun, said as he walked toward Sydney and Gage, "but we sure as hell are going to find out." Carl pointed his gun at Gage as Sydney stared in disbelief wondering if he really was going to shoot her partner right in front of her.
To be continued. . .
***AUTHOR'S NOTE**** I am SO sorry for the delay on this chapter and I will try not to leave you hanging for long about the ending. If you are still reading along, I am really glad that you are staying with my story. It means a lot.
