Duncan looked at his watch. It was half past midnight. He stood and picked up the black duffle bag with the money in it.

"Let's go get Richie."

He took Tessa's arm and they went out to the car.

At one o'clock, Collin looked at Mary. "Just do it exactly how I told you to."

He got up and went back into the room. He grabbed Richie around the waist and drug him, screaming and struggling into the empty living room.

"Shh..." Mary went over to the panicking teen. "Shh." She ran her fingers though his dirty hair. "It's over now," she whispered comfortingly.

Collin grabbed her wrist and jerked his head toward the garage. She gave Richie a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder before going out to start the car. Collin put a now complacent Richie over his shoulder and carried him out to the car. He leaned Richie up against the car, pulled the release to the trunk then put him inside. He took out the Polaroid camera, took a picture of Richie, then slammed the trunk closed.

"Did you have to put him back there?" Mary asked.

"Just get in the car."

They drove to the park, turning off the headlights as they approached. Collin parked the car in the shadows under a near by bridge. They got out of the car, both wearing masks and gloves, each with a Walkie Talkie; Collin with the knife, Mary the gun.

Mary walked to the meeting place while Collin was left to take care of Richie.

Duncan and Tessa arrived at the Founder's Statue just after Mary. At the base of the statue was the picture of Richie and the Walkie Talkie. Mary stood her ground, gun at her side. Tessa stepped forward to get the radio. Duncan took her arm and went to get it himself.

He pushed the button. "Richie?"

"Mac!" Richie's voice crackled back.

Tessa grabbed the radio. "Richie, are you alright?"

"God, get me outta here!" he begged, his voice breaking.

"Rich?" Duncan asked. "Where are you?" There was no answer. "Rich? Richie!"

"Do you have the money?" he asked in a frightened whisper.

"Of course we do. All of it."

There was a pause. "Take three steps forward," Richie told him. "Put the money down, and walk away."

"When do we get you, Richie?" Duncan demanded.

"Just put the money down and walk away," Richie's voice repeated. "I'll tell you where I am when they have the money."

"Okay. I'm walking forward," Duncan said. "I'm putting the money down."

"Walk away."

Duncan took a deep breath. "I'm backing away."

Mary held the gun up, stepped forward and picked up the bag.

"What's going on here!?" a voice demanded.

Duncan, Tessa, and Mary all looked toward the sound and saw a young policeman walk out of the shadows.

"They have our son!" Tessa yelled.

The policeman started toward the couple. Mary took it as her cue to exit; she dropped the money and ran.

"Hey! Freeze!" the officer yelled taking aim.

"No!" Duncan pushed his arms down. "If you kill her, they'll kill Richie!"

Mary rounded the corner under the bridge.

"Did you get it?" Collin asked.

"Cops!" she screamed. Collin pushed Richie back into the trunk, slammed it closed and then sped off.

Duncan sighed. "His name is Richard Ryan. He's eighteen years old. He was kidnapped Friday night sometime between eight pm and two am," he said for the fifth time. "We don't know who has him. All we know was they wanted us to meet them this morning for the ransom drop. And we would have gotten him back had one of your men not gotten in the way." This was the forth time he had to answer the same questions. First the police at the scene, then the police at the station, then the police at his home, and now some FBI agent in their home as his men bugged their phones and looked for clues.

Tessa sat quietly at Duncan's side, holding his hand.

"Well, we have all the evidence in the lab. We'll give you a call when we get any information."

"That's it?" Tessa demanded. "That's all you're going to tell us?"

"Ma'am, once we have more information we'll contact you. We're leaving some of our best men here to monitor everything that happens. If the kidnappers contact you, we'll find them. I promise you we are going to do everything we can to bring your boy back home where he belongs."

"I'm Randi McFarland reporting live from the Founder's Statue in Highcliff Park where in the early hours of the morning the police foiled a parent's attempt to get their son back. Apparently, a rookie street officer happened upon the ransom drop, distracting the boy's family long enough for the kidnappers to get away with the abducted teen. Police are not releasing the names of the parties involved. When asked this morning, Lieutenant James Travett of the FBI had this to say:"

"The teenage son of a wealthy local couple was abducted sometime in the early morning hours of Saturday morning. We have a few clues to go on, but are confident at this time that the boy was unharmed at the time of the drop and is still in relative safety."

"Stay tuned to channel seven as we follow this story. I'm Randi McFarland reporting, Channel Seven News."

Duncan turned off the TV. "Why are you watching that?" he asked Tessa.

"I just keep thinking that maybe they know something."

"They won't know anything we don't."

"Duncan, he was so close. How could we let them get away with him again?"

"We'll get him back, Tess," he promised her. "Everything will be okay."

Richie had no idea what was going on. One minute he was talking to Duncan and the next he was back in the trunk being driven away and now the car was parked, and had been for quite some time.

"Help!!!" he screamed. "Help! Someone help me!" he kicked at the sides of the car. "Someone help me please!!"

"Shut up in there!" someone yelled slamming the trunk lid.

Richie jumped. "Lemme outta here!" he screamed. "Let me go!"

Outside, Collin slammed his fist on the trunk again. "I said be quiet!"

"Collin, please. He's just scared," Mary pleaded with him. She had been sitting quietly on a rock while he paced and ranted at the scenic look out outside the city.

"What are we going to do with him?" Collin demanded. "The cops are gonna be sniffing everywhere looking for him!"

"Help me!"

"Why don't we just let him go?" she suggested. "Leave him the knife to get himself loose and he can find his way home."

"Let me outta here!"

"No."

"Then what do we do with him?"

Without a word, Collin went into the car, got the gun and opened the trunk.

"No! I won't let you kill him."

"Please! Let me go! I won't tell anyone!" Richie bargained, panicking when he heard what Mary said.

Collin fired a shot into the air and both Mary and Richie went silent.

"Please," Richie whimpered as he heard someone approach the car. "Please don't kill me. I'll be quiet, I promise. Just...please don't hurt me. I'll do anything."

Someone grabbed him roughly but the hair and sat him up.

"No... please!" he begged, instantly crying. "Please... Oh, God, please don't!"

"Shut up," Collin hissed in his ear.

Richie closed his mouth but continued to whimper and sniff as he tried to squirm away.

"What are you doing to him?" Mary whispered.

Collin picked up the discarded duct tape roll by Richie's feet and ripped off a piece. "I'm shutting him up." He tapped Richie's mouth and pushed him back down, closing the trunk. "Get in the car."

"What's going on? What are you doing?"

"Taking him back to your parents' place. We're gonna keep him a few days, then up the ransom."

It had been two days since they had heard anything from the kidnappers. The police had been over their home with a fine toothed comb and found nothing.

"Mr. MacLeod," Detective Powell asked, knocking on the antique store office door where Duncan was trying to get some privacy. "Can I have a minute?"

"Sure." Duncan sighed and gestured him in.

"Look, I'm going to be frank with you. I think you've been set up and you should just let the kid play kidnapped all he wants."

"What?" Duncan asked.

"You know what he is, MacLeod. Ryan's bad news. I'm willing to bet money that he's in on this."

"Then you're willing to loose. Richie wouldn't do this."

"You've only known him a few weeks, MacLeod. You think he turned around that easily? Face it, he played you."

"No, he didn't."

"You think that a roof and some food is going to turn him into a saint?"

"Maybe he just needed someone to believe in him, because of people like you out there who won't give him a chance!" Duncan yelled. "You remember this, Powell, I will pay as much as anyone asks to make sure he gets back here safe and sound. And if you ever come into my home spouting off that derogatory crap about my family, you better be ready to find out how much I stand behind them. Both of them. Tessa and Richie. And if anything...anything happens to Richie because of your and your close minded, pompous, arrogant, derogatory reluctance to be on this case, I will do anything to get your badge and gun, and ruin your life so badly, you'll be lucky to get a job licking gum off the streets. Is that understood?"