The Warehouse

Oliver stood by Mr. Haney's truck and studied the warehouse. It was indeed hidden very well, surrounded by nothing but woods for as a far as the eye could see. He hadn't noticed this before, but it seemed that they had driven down a dirt road through the woods until they came to the clearing especially made for the warehouse. It seemed that no one would be able to find their way here unless they intended to go to that warehouse.

But Oliver couldn't imagine why anyone would intend to go there in the first place. The warehouse was old and falling to pieces. The paint was peeling and the windows that lined the high part of the warehouse were cracked and broken. The whole setting seemed cold and uninviting. It broke his heart to think that Lisa was forced to stay here for so many days. Suddenly, all fear that he may have had about him or his friends melted away and all that mattered was getting his wife home to the people who loved her.

Just then, the rest of the men quietly joined Oliver at the back of the truck and looked at him expectantly, waiting for him to confirm their next move.

"Alright," Oliver finally said, "everybody take your places and remember your duties. Go!"

And with that, the men split up and quietly took their positions. Mr. Smoot took his seat in Mr. Kimball's jeep and the rest of the men ducked behind the bushes or hid behind trees. Once satisfied that everyone was safely out of view, Oliver, Eb, and Joseph snuck over to the lowest window on the right side of the warehouse. They crouched to the floor, wiped the dust off the window, and peeked inside. Oliver's heart skipped a beat when he saw what was going on inside.

The warehouse looked worse on the inside than on the outside. The floor and the walls were covered in dust and mold. Rats ran free in and out of various cracks in the walls and the sunlight that streamed through the windows cast an eerie glow inside. A dank, wet smell wafted through the break in the window and into Oliver's nose, making the place even more unpleasant. It also looked bigger on the inside than it did on the outside, probably because it was so empty. The only things that were in that old warehouse were all gathered in the middle of it, along with Lisa.

Oliver's heart had leaped for joy when he first caught sight of Lisa, but that feeling quickly disappeared when he observed the conditions she had been living under. She was sitting alone in the middle of that vast warehouse in an old chair with a dejected look on her face. There was a couch, a tiny cot, and a table with an old vase on it positioned in front of her like a sort of living room setting, but the furniture was old and pathetic-looking.

Oliver wondered why Lisa didn't try to make a break for it. After all, there didn't seem to be anyone in the warehouse to guard her. But Oliver soon realized two very important reasons why not. The first one was because, as Joseph had explained earlier, there were huge guards positioned on the outside every door, and two positioned on either side of a garage door that must have been used to allow trucks in when the warehouse was actually used. This was a discouraging fact for many reasons. Not only did it prevent Lisa from escaping, but it made Oliver realize that he had one man to fend off every guard, but his men were not as strong as them. His men could easily be defeated.

The second reason Lisa did not try to run away was the reason that hurt Oliver the most. Attached to her ankle was some sort of chain that was attached just behind a chair to a rod-like thing that was bolted down to the ground. It provided her with the space she needed to get to the furniture, but nothing else. Oliver couldn't believe they had chained her up like a dog and kept her in such horrible conditions.

Suddenly, his thoughts were interrupted by the sound of someone entering the warehouse. Oliver turned his head to see who he assumed was Paul walk in through the door that was directly in front of Lisa. He sauntered over to Lisa and stood in front of her. Lisa kept her head down, as if trying to avoid his gaze.

"Aw, are you sore at me again? What ever is the matter," he asked in mock sadness. Lisa did not respond.

"I know, it's because of the chain, right? That must be it," he said, making circles around Lisa like a hungry vulture as he talked. Lisa kept her eyes on the ground and still said nothing.

"I do hate to see you tied down like this, but it's your own fault, you know. Trying to run away and all," he said, as if reprimanding a child. "If you can't be a good little girl and stay here until we get our money, you must suffer the consequences."

Not getting an answer from Lisa, he continued. "How many times have you tried to leave us already? Three…four?"

Lisa did not respond. Paul sighed in frustration. "Let's ask our guards, shall we? Guards," he called. Immediately, six burly men came into the warehouse. They gathered around Lisa's living area expectantly.

"Boys, how many times has this lovely lady tried to run away from us," he asked, gesturing toward Lisa.

"About four times, sir," a man that Oliver recognized as one of Lisa's kidnappers answered.

Paul shook his head and sighed. "Four times, how shameful," he said in over-exaggerated disappointment.

Lisa looked up and Oliver could see her fiery Hungarian temper flash in her eyes. "I have no business being here in the first place. Why shouldn't I run avay," she snapped back.

Paul jumped back a little and smiled in amusement. "Well, well, well, someone has quiet the fire buried within her! I like it," he sneered. He put his hand on her cheek and began to stroke it, but Lisa turned her face away. Paul's sneer disappeared and he pulled her up roughly to her feet.

"Look here," Paul said as he put his hands on her arms and shook her. "As long as you're here, you will treat me with respect and do as I say or you'll get it, do you understand!"

Lisa said nothing. Instead, she stared at him with the coldest, angriest stare she could muster. Apparently, Paul's rough treatment and threatening words did nothing to break her temper. This increased his anger ten fold.

"Did you hear me," he demanded to know.

Lisa shook herself away from his grip and took a step or two back. "I heard you," she exclaimed. "But I vill not obey! I'm not your slave and I'm not going to stay here much longer! My husband is ten times smarter than all of you combined! He'll rescue me and all of you vill go to jail! You vait and see!"

At this outburst, Paul raised his left hand and used the back of it to slap Lisa square across her left cheek. The force of the blow caused Lisa to whirl around and fall to the floor. Her arms and legs screamed out in agony from hitting the floor so hard and her left cheek burned with searing pain. She felt tears well up in her eyes but blinked them back, refusing to let them know that Paul had hurt her. She laid herself flat on the ground and stayed silent, waiting for any other hit that might be coming next.

Meanwhile, at the window, Oliver felt the most intense anger he ever felt build up within him as he watched the entire display. He was about to disregard all that they had planned and get up to teach Paul a lesson, but Joseph stopped him from fully rising.

"Don't," he said with a tense voice. "Let me handle this." With that, Joseph rose from his place by Oliver and walked around to the front of the warehouse. Half a minute later, Oliver heard the same door that Paul had entered through burst open and saw Joseph standing at the threshold.

"What is that woman doing on the floor," he demanded to know. His voice boomed through the cavernous warehouse, causing Paul and the guards to jump in surprise.

"Uh, hey boss," Paul called, trying to make his voice sound casual. "We was just….just, uh, cleaning up and uh….she fell, and…" he tried to explain, but Joseph cut him off.

"Silence," he demanded. Paul immediately shut his mouth. Joseph then walked over to Lisa and gently lifted her off the ground. He sat her down in the chair, knelt down beside her, and removed the chain around her ankle.

"Are you alright," he asked, his voice tender and full of concern. Lisa nodded and looked down at the ground, uncomfortable with the affection the person who kidnapped her was showing her. Joseph rose from his knees and turned his attention to Paul and the guards. Oliver watched in amazement as the other men cowered at Joseph's look. Apparently, Joseph had managed to appoint himself leader and earned the other men's fear.

"What have I told you about the treatment of this woman," he asked. "What have I told you a million times!"

"You told us not to hurt her and to treat her with respect," a guard answered in a meek voice. Paul shot him a dirty look.

"And did you listen? No! You go against my orders behind my back! How am I supposed to trust you? How am I supposed to trust that you will take care of the money that Douglas is going to give us?"

The mentioning of Oliver's name was the signal. As soon as the word Douglas escaped Joseph's mouth, Oliver and Eb rose from their positions and began to make their way to the door in the back of the warehouse. As agreed, Joseph continued to rant in order to distract the men.

Once at the back door, Oliver and Eb peeked into the small window on top of door. Oliver could see that Joseph had managed to turn the men around so that their backs were facing the door that Oliver and Eb were to enter in through.

"Well Eb, it's now or never," Oliver whispered to him. Eb nodded in agreement. Oliver took a deep breathe and opened the door as quietly as he could. He used a nearby rock as a stop to keep door open for a quick exit and together, he and Eb crept into the old warehouse.