Chapter Two
The room door opened and the light switch was flipped. Pam made her way to the bed and sat down heavily on the end. She watched Ralph close and lock the door, then sit next to her.
"This has been the best evening I've had in a long time, Ralph. Thank you."
"You're welcome, Pam. You deserved it."
"I especially liked being serenaded," Pam said.
Ralph's cheeks flushed slightly. "It was nothing."
"If you insist." Pam stood. "If you don't mind, I got a little warm from all the dancing, so I'm going to wash up a little, then you may continue to amaze me with your plans." She gave him a wink, then crossed in front of him.
Ralph kept his eyes on her as she stopped by the suitcase and grabbed a few things, then headed into the bathroom. After she closed the door, Ralph set into motion. He slipped off his suit jacket and hung it in the closet, then pulled the "Do Not Disturb" sign off the knob, opened the door slightly and hung it on the outside, then closed the door. He sat back down on the edge of the bed and pulled off his shoes, then his socks, dumping them in a heap under the luggage rack.
Ralph got up again and headed for the windows. He pulled the curtains closed and re-checked the climate on the vents. He straightened and glanced around the room. He went over and turned on the lamp over the bed, then crossed to flip the light switch off.
Ralph returned to the bed and untucked the quilt and blankets, pulling all of them to the foot of the bed. He nodded, then laid himself out and waited for her.
It wasn't long before Pam came out of the bathroom. She wore a long, red, silky robe that practically reached the floor. She stopped at the end of the bed and watched Ralph's reaction. His jaw dropped.
"Oh my..." Ralph shook himself. "That's new, isn't it?"
Pam nodded. "I had a surprise of my own in mind for this trip."
"Definitely." Ralph grinned as she climbed on the bed and moved beside him. "You are so beautiful..."
Pam responded by unbuttoning his shirt. She ran her hand over his chest. "And you are so handsome."
They leaned in and met in a kiss. As the kiss deepened, Ralph reached a hand up and clicked off the light over the bed, sending the room into darkness, with just a hint of moonlight coming through the top of the curtains.
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The convention was in full swing the next day. People milled about in throngs. Booths and tables were scattered all across the main hall, plus two of the smaller halls. Ralph sat at the Whitney High table, while his co-workers made their rounds.
Pam was also going from one to the next, chatting with people. She crossed to one wall, over to a water fountain for a quick drink. Leaning in, she paused hearing whispers from a room around the corner. She straightened and inched her way toward the corner to hear better.
"--and no one is getting in our way. Franklyn wants this job done and done right the first time. We'll give it five minutes, then go in--"
Pam's eyes widened and she moved away from the wall quickly, headed back in the direction of the Whitney High table. She returned as Mr. Knight was offering to take over for Ralph. She watched Ralph nod, then he met her a few steps from the table.
"Isn't this great, Pam?" Ralph said, practically beaming.
"Hon, I think we've got a problem here."
"What do you mean?"
"I went over to get a drink of water and overheard someone talking about a job being done in about five minutes. Ralph, I think there's some crooks on the way in."
"Pamela, this is a teachers' convention, what could they possibly want from us?" Ralph asked, not wanting to believe what he was hearing.
"I don't know. All I know is what I heard. And now there's only four minutes before it happens." Pam paused, then asked quietly, "Are you wearing the suit?"
Ralph grinned. "I told you, Pam, I wasn't going to wear it unless absolutely necessary."
"Ralph, I just have a really bad feeling about this."
"Well..." Ralph thought a moment. "Okay, so that's what you heard. Maybe you misunderstood. You didn't hear the whole conversation, did you? Maybe you missed the context around it--"
"Ralph, would you stop trying to rationalize this! I've been around you and Bill and scenarios long enough to understand how it works and I just know--"
Suddenly, some shots rang out overhead. People began scattering, running for cover as twelve men wearing ski masks came into the hall, guns poised just slightly overhead.
"They're early..." Pam said, eyes widening.
Ralph's eyes closed. "Damn." He shook his head and opened his eyes again. "We have to do something before they ruin the convention completely."
"They have guns, Ralph, and you don't have the suit!" Pam reminded him.
"I know that!" Ralph exclaimed. "Still, I have to do something!"
Pam sighed as Ralph started glancing around the hall. His gaze landed on the long curtains behind where most of the ski-masked men now stood. Half of them spread out to each side, while the other half stopped in front of the windows. All of them were taking money, jewelry, and anything else of value.
"I think I have an idea..." Ralph said.
"What can I do?" Pam asked, realizing it was futile to argue with him anymore.
"I'm going to try to pull down one of the curtains and throw it onto them. Follow me and stay close. Go to the same curtain I go to."
As the men spread out further, Ralph and Pam slipped past three of them in the confusion and over to the windows. Together, they tugged on the long, heavy curtain. After several tries, it came free and fell to the floor with a soft thud. They each grabbed an end and eased their way up behind the three men. Ralph held up three fingers, then nodded once, twice, and after the third nod, they threw the curtain over the men's heads. With the men startled, Ralph ran and jumped into the heap, knocking them over.
Ralph jumped off again in case they began shooting and headed closer to the middle of the room. He glanced around for Pam.
"Ralph!"
He spun around hearing Pam's yell and found her being held by one of the other gun men, with another flanking him. The rest of the people were either against the opposite wall or almost there, emptying nearly half of the hall. It looked just like a showdown with an audience.
"Bad move, pal," said the second man.
Without thinking, Ralph moved forward, closing the gap between him and the two men holding Pam. He got within approximately ten feet and the second man waved his gun.
"I wouldn't get any closer if you want your lady friend to continue breathing."
Ralph held his hands out in front of him to show he meant no more harm. "Listen, I just don't want to see anyone hurt, okay?"
"Well, you shoulda thought of that before playing hero." Two more men came up on either side of him and the man holding Pam. He nodded to them. "Get him. We're bringing them both with us."
The other two men did as told and walked up to Ralph, each grabbing an arm. Ralph didn't fight back, as he didn't know what might happen to Pam if he did, so he went along with them.
The gun man that seemed to be in charge waved on the one holding Pam. They went back out through the room they came in. The rest of the gun men pulled the curtain off the other three, who followed after. The two men pulling Ralph along followed next, leaving the rest of the men to cover them.
Ralph's brain was already moving on auto-pilot, thinking up various possible scenarios of what these guys had in store for them. When the group reached the rear door, leading out into an alley, Ralph noticed a black van and a black sedan. He watched their leader put Pam in the back and got in next to her. The doors slammed closed, the car started up, and pulled away.
One of the men opened the back doors of the van and jumped inside. He reappeared moments later with two lengths of rope and a roll of duct tape. Ralph rolled his eyes, and the man walked up to him.
"This is my favorite part of the job," he said and gave Ralph a grin as he tore off a strip of tape. Even though Ralph could've gotten off a last comment, he chose not to, and then no longer had a chance to comment as the gun man plastered the piece of tape over his mouth. One of the two men holding him tied his wrists, the other covering him, while the man that got the rope and tape tied Ralph's ankles together.
The biggest gun man, who'd been felled by the curtain, then hoisted Ralph up in a fireman's carry and climbed into the back of the van. Two jumped into the cab of the van while the others climbed in the back.
The van started up and began moving. One of the men pulled out a walkie talkie. "Joey, we're on our way. Our trouble maker's been gift-wrapped." He grinned in Ralph's direction.
"Joey's" voice came over the walkie talkie and Ralph recognized it as their leader. "Good. Keep him that way until you hear otherwise. I need to report in so's we can find out what to do with these two." There was a pause. "Ya know, this broad is gorgeous!"
Ralph's eyes widened at the comment. Then there was an obvious "smack" sound, followed by a "Damn!" Ralph would've grinned if he'd been able to.
"I hope the boss lets us decide what to do with these two. Out." And the walkie talkie went to static. The man pushed a button to turn his off.
Unable to move, Ralph had no choice but to wait out the drive. Again, he tried to come up with atleast one plausible scenario, but being tied up hampered them.
It wasn't a long drive, which Ralph was thankful for. The van came to a stop and one of the men opened the doors. The big guy hoisted Ralph up again and jumped out the back. The man's landing jarred Ralph, causing him to give a slight groan. The big guy smirked and headed into the building.
The building was an old manufacturing plant, with old, large, metal machinery scattered about. The big man carried him across the room and into another, which held large rolls of paper and big, empty, wooden spools. The man unceremoniously dumped Ralph onto the floor, by a wall. Ralph became painfully aware of the wall immediately as his head clunked into it. The big guy smirked, then left the room, leaving Ralph alone.
Ralph shook his head lightly, trying to refocus. He shifted himself to sit upright the best he could and glanced around the room. Anything sharp enough to cut the ropes would be of great use... but there was nothing there.
Ralph really wished he had the suit. When Bill found out about this, he'd never let him live it down. Assuming he'd still be alive. He rolled his eyes at the thought and decided to try listening, maybe he could find out what these goons were up to... and where Pam was.
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