LILLYNILLY - Thanks, and I was waiting for someone to ask those questions! It's called 'Eight Easy Steps' because the song that inspired me for this fic was 'Eight Easy Steps' by Alanis Morissette. Don't ask how it inspired me. It just did. Also, I can't tell you what the steps are, as it would give a lot away. Sorry! But, just to let you know, the chapter titles are only one word for a reason.
CHARMED-ANGEL4 - Yups, I wanted to make him a major ass. He'll be a bit more of one in this chapter. Damn him! Teehee! Thanks!
C.C. MCKENNA - Thanks, and plotting? What does plotting mean? Is it the sound a horse makes when it walks? Or does it mean something else.
WINTER BLAZE - Thanks!
CLAIRE - Yeah, it sucks. I will DEFINITELY not be able to write this weekend, 'cause I gotta do them all! Sometimes it sucks being a procrastinator.
DARKANGEL06 - I know, I've just had a real brain rush for this one! I'm sorry! Thanks!
NICOLE812US - Thanks. Yups!
OTHCHARMEDFREAK - Okay, okay, but the next chapter of this probably won't be up until, like, not this weekend, but the next weekend. I gots lots to do. Yups! Thanks for the review!
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As soon as Piper heard her father's voice on the other end of the line, she felt a gun press against her temple. "Stay quiet." Fred commanded, jabbing the gun a little bit into her head. But, it wasn't necessary, she couldn't do anything anyway.
"Hello, Mr. Bennett." Bob said, obviously into the speaker phone. "I presume you already know why we're calling, so let's cut to the chase. Bring fifteen billion dollars to The corner of Avon and Lady Roads at midnight, tonight. Don't bring your policeman buddies, who I know are listening, or your daughter dies." "Don't you dare hurt her!" Piper heard her father's voice say threateningly over the speaker phone. "Ah ah ah, Mr. Bennett. You wouldn't want to say something you would regret later, would you?" Bob asked calmly, yet the underlying threat could still be heard loud and clear.
"C-Can i talk to my daughter?" Victor Bennett asked over the phone, sounding extremely worried. Piper heard Bob sigh, and could almost picture eyes rolling. "Fine. Be quick." he said, and Piper heard footsteps. She suddenly felt the duct tape over her mouth be ripped off, along with what seemed most of her hair and at LEAST one layer of skin. It hurt like hell. She then felt someone reach into her mouth and take out the cloth that was doing most of the muffling. She moved her jaw around a little bit, happy that she could move it again after what seemed like hours of stiffness.
"Talk." she heard Bob demand, as Fred pushed the gun against her head for a reminder that it was still there, and she should watch what she said. She then heard a small clap-ish noise. It seemed as if Bob had put the speaker closer to where she was sitting. "Daddy?" Piper asked.
Piper's voice was small and quiet. It sounded as if a little girl were speaking to her father, not a teenager. But, the little, quivering voice portrayed much of the emotion swirling around Piper's head and heart. Despite the fact that she loathed and despised her father, she wanted to be with him at that time, not just talking to him over the speaker phone. She would rather have been anywhere but where she was at that moment. She wanted to be safe again.
"Piper? Is that you?" Piper heard her father ask. "Yeah, Dad, it's me." Piper replied, in the same little girlish voice. "Oh, honey, I'm so happy to hear your voice." Victor said, sounding a bit relieved. "I'm so sorry about our argument last night. Um... have you told... them anything about it?" Piper paused for a moment, stunned. The first time she talked to her father while she was being held for ransom, he asked if she had told her kidnappers about her sisters. Why the hell would he think that she told them that? She would have to be completely out of her mind before she puts her sisters in danger, and probably not even then. If she could, she would have rolled her eyes. "No, I haven't." Piper said, annoyed. She could not BELIEVE her father!
"Thank God! Are you okay? Have they hurt you?" her dad asked. Of course, he only asked about her well being AFTER he found out whether she had exposed his secret or not. 'What a jerk.' Piper thought. She knew that her father cared about her a lot, but it seemed that he cared about shutting out the rest of their family more. It was ridiculous. "Yeah, Dad, I'm fine. I'm only hurt a little bit, don't worry. Just a broken AH!"
Before Piper had a chance to tell her father her small injury on her ankle, one of the men grabbed her hair tightly, and pulled her head back, causing Piper to yelp. They apparently didn't want her to tell her father that they had hurt her in any way. "Piper! PIPER!" Piper heard her name being called out by her father over the phone. "Goodbye, Mr. Bennett." Piper heard Bob say to her father, then heard the unmistakable 'click' of a phone hanging up. "Bitch!" Piper heard Fred call, and then felt a sharp pain on the side of her head. She was unconscious before she hit the ground.
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AN: Okay, I was originally gonna make that part one chapter, but then discovered that it was WAY too short. So, on with the next part of the chapter...
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After what seemed like hours and hours, Piper finally heard someone walk into the room. After she had woken up, she had had an intense throbbing in her head that she couldn't get rid of. Her gag was also back in, muffling any sound she made. By the time she heard the footsteps, though, there was only a constant, dull throb in her head and her ankle.
She felt the duct tape get ripped off of her mouth, and the cloth taken out again. One of the men had taken her gag out, but for what reason she did not know. "How are you feeling?" the man asked. Piper recognized the voice. It was Bob's. "How do you think I'm doing, you twit?" Piper asked, against her better judgment. She never really was good at controlling her temper. Piper felt a hand swipe across her face, and her head shot to the side. She could feel a slight trickle of blood run down her cheek as a result of the slap.
"I'll take that as a good." Bob said. "Now, I'll get to the real reason I'm here. My partner and I are curious. What WAS your fight about?" Piper paused, debating whether or not to say anything. She knew that the man in front of her (she assumed) could kill her in a second. But she also knew that they needed her, and she might be putting her sisters in danger if she said a thing. Not only would they be in danger of being kidnapped like she was, but there would be a media circus on their lawn. She didn't want to put her sisters through that. "None of your business." Piper replied shortly.
She felt her chin grabbed in one of Bob's rough hands. Her head was turned in the direction that she assumed was Bob's face. "You're going to tell me now, and you're going to like it. Either that, or you're dead." Bob threatened. Piper debated inside. If she told, and they told, then everyone would be able to know who kidnapped her. It would be an easy trap. "Look in my right jean pocket." Piper said finally.
Bob reached into the said pocket, and pulled out what was inside of it. Piper heard a pause, and knew that he had no clue what the picture meant. But, Piper did. It was the only picture that she had left of her family, and it was a pretty good one too. It was taken just a few weeks before her mother had drowned. It consisted of her Grams, her mom, and her sisters. She always kept it on her, wanting to keep them near at all times.
After a moment, Bob asked "What is this?" It was obvious that he was completely confused. "Look at the little girl in the middle." Piper directed. She knew the picture by heart, so she knew where everyone was. She could envision it in her mind at that moment, not only giving directions to Bob but also trying to find comfort. "And?" he asked, still having no clue. "That's me." Piper explained. "That's you? Who are the other women?" Bob asked. He was actually being kind of civil for a kidnapper. "The old lady is Grams, my mom's mom, the lady is my mom, and the two little girls on either side of me are my sisters, Prue and Phoebe." Piper said.
"But I thought your mother died in childbirth." Bob stated, repeating the reason the public thought that Piper didn't have a mother. "No, that's what the public is told, but it's not true. I grew up with my Grams, Mom, Prue, and Phoebe until I was five. That's when my mom drowned in the lake at the camp that my older sister Prue and I used to go to. She was the parent with the custody of the three of us, so, when she died, the custody issue had to be redone. Grams won the custody of two of us, Dad the custody of one of us. Prue hated him, and Phoebe was smart-mouthed, so he took me.
After a moment of silence, Bob said "Wow. He's more of a pig then I thought he was." Piper could tell, then and there, that Bob was getting on her side, and might be on more than one issue. Like the fact that she was his captive.
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AN: Don't worry, this whole kidnapping schtick will be over soon. I mean, there's not much else I can do. There's, like, three chapters of it left. (shrugs) Oh, well. Please, please review!
