"Guys," a voice called through the dark. "I think someone's moving in to the house!"
"Ah," came a second voice. "We need to get back to familiar territory anyways. I don't think we're finding any leads here."
"When are we going to eat?" questioned the third and final member of the pack.
"Jeez, Luke, is that all you think about?" came the first voice.
"I think we will all need to feed soon. Just not tonight. We have a mission. Are we all agreed?"
A duo answered affirmative.
Adako grunted as she heaved the big blue rocking chair out of the house her Aunt had just moved into- or was in the process of moving into.She set it down on the steps outside the front door, noticing it was getting quite late, not to mention she was more than noticing the soreness of her back.
"Where did you want this to go, Kathy?" She yelled to her aunt inside the house.
"I don't care," Came the reply. "Just put it somewhere in the back of that old shop out there. I don't think anyone uses it anymore."
Adako frowned and walked back into the house. "Are you sure? There's probably rats and stuff out there."
"It's better than taking a trip to the dump," her aunt peeked out from behind a pile of boxes.
"Is there anything else you're going to want me to do or can I leave after this?"
Her aunt raised her eyebrows and surveyed the ktichen floor, still covered in boxes. She curled her lip at them as if it would sccare them into unpacking themselves, and sighed as they remained quite still.
"If you think you need to, you can go. Thanks for your help."
"No problem, see ya." Adako waved behind her as she walked out. She returned to the abandoned chair on the porch and called for her dog, Esparanza, whom she called Espie for short.
Espie came running and tagged along as she headed lumberingly towards the huge closed in garage that looked more like a warehouse about a hundred feet from the house.
Espie sniffed the air with her wet, black nose and the strip of fur on her back rose. Her black and white body tensed and she let out a squeeky whine and pawed at Adako's leg.
"Yes, Espie," she puffed. "There's probly been quite a few dogs around here recently."
They went around to the side door. Adako kicked it and it opened too fast, rebounding and slamming in her face. She blinked.
"There's always more than one way to skin a cat," she thought, "and I intend to find every way."
Setting the chair down, she propped to door open and dragged it in. Deeper inside, it was pitch black.
"Espie, where are you?" Adako called quietly, hearing herself repeated a second and third time as her voice bounced from wall to wall. There was no answer. She looked toward the shaft of light that was coming though the door and saw her dog making a hasty exit with her tail between her legs.
"Funny dog," she thought. She dragged the chair a bit fiurther until she decided to carry it again. She walked a few halting steps until she tripped on something and dropped the chair.
"Ow!" She shrieked as it landed on her toe. An immediate "Ahh!" followed in a very male voice and echoed along with hers. She shrieked again at the sound, and heard the bark of a dog and the telltale click of claws on the concrete floor. She looked towards the door, hope Esperanza was coming to her rescue, then suddenly with a big bang the light was gone.
"H-hello?" Adako called. "Who's there? Esparanza?"
A soft laugh followed by whispers answered, and she heard a dog whining. Angered at the thought of anyone possibly hurting her dog, she yelled,
"What're you doing to my dog?" In an accusing tone. Several laughs erupted after her question and the whining increased, mixed with on occasional growl and a shuffling noise. Adako did not like this.
"Stop it!" she demanded. Silence suddenly reined. She felt around in the darkness, trying to orient herself. She thought she was facing the door, but wasn't sure, so she slid her feet along the floor so she wouldn't trip over anything and felt for the wall. She listened intently for any sound her company might be making but there was none.
She heard a shuffling on her left and stopped in midstep, then it was on her right and in front. Silence again, then there came a whine in front of her. She stepped forward.
"Espie? C'mere baby." She heard claws clicking as the dog ran the other way. This was so not right. Esperanza wouldn't run away like that. She stepped back again and ran into- somebody pinned her arms to her sides and covered her mouth. Mmmm was all that came out instead of the scream she had intended. The hand on her mouth was quickly replaced with a strip of meterial that tasted disgusting.
Adako struggled against her captor's grip but it was of no use. This guy had muscles like iron! The gag was tied behind her head and the she felt her hands being tied as well. She was beginning to wonder if they were going to blindfold her as well, even tho that would have been totally pointless.
Without warning she was shoved forward, right into the arms of another.
"Sheesh," She wondered. "How many are there?"
"There are three of us, " she heard. She squeeked through her gag. The man that held her laughed. Adako started shaking and her imagination was running free. What on earth was going on? Had she stumbled onto a drug lord's private territory or something? She thought through her options.
The knife on her keychain had broken off a while ago, and she didn't have one in her pocket. Wait! her cell phone- was in her cargo pocket. She was wearing her punk jeans that day, bright blue and so baggy you could fit two legs where one should be. She always got at least one comment when she wore them. She was startled by a hand reaching into the very pocket her cell pone was in, retrieving it and taking away that hope. How the heck did he know it was in that pocket?
"Some people just never learn," She heard the man who was holding her say. He turned her around and leaned away, talking with the other two.
"What're we supposed to do with her?" The one who held her, Luke, asked them telepathically.
"How the hey am I supposed to know?" Said Monty, the on who caught her first.
"Well, we can't just leave her here," said Landon, the third and closest to the earth of the three. "Especially now. You mucked it all up, Monty."
"What! She scared me, ok? I didn't even know she was here."
"So you have to scream like a girl? Ha."
"Fine! Let's take her with us!" Monty suggested.
"What good would that do? We can't changer her." Said Landon.
"Of course not. She could help Luke with the daytime runs."
The other two were silent. Finally Landon spoke. "That is an option, but not a very smart one. Jeez, how old is she anyways?"
"Dude. I really don't care. What I do know is that I'm starved."
"Luke!" Landon forced his way into his thoughts. "Enough. She isn't a snack."
Adako started struggling in earnest. Just thinking how close she was to her aunt and to help made her sick because it was so far away. And it wasn't even like they were accomplishing anything, either. he was just holding her there. She yelled through her gag.
"Ah, peace and serenity won't last long with her around," Monty sighed. "Shall we let her in on the drift?"
They all nodded and Luke tugged the rope around her wrists and brought her closer, inbetween the three of them.
