I'm updating. Sorry I took so long, but I had a little writer's block. Everyone knows that's always fun….
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Frank awoke in a dark closet. Moving a little, he brushed against a coat that hung there. He turned the knob, only to find that it was locked. He sighed. He'd expected it, kind of. He felt along the floor – he was still untied – before finding a pin.
Actually, his hand had found it, and he yelped, but the kidnappers didn't come. He guessed he was okay, so he attempted to pick the lock. It wasn't long enough. He slid it under the door, though, so he wouldn't get poked again.
He sat down and sighed. Even in his sweater and heavy jeans, he was still cold. He knew it was air conditioned, speaking of which, why? It had been….
The door opened and there was a man staring at him, his mouth agape. "Who are you?"
Frank didn't answer, unsure how to answer this man's question, or if this man was another one of John's "spies". He knew the manager was one for sure – he'd heard him talking to John last night about how John owed him $500, and John paid him without question.
"Who are you?" the man demanded, shoving Frank back into the wall. "Do you hang out in coat closets for fun or something?"
Frank's breath caught in his throat. He wasn't sure what to say. He was in John's apartment, so this had to be a trap. He didn't answer the man and the man just sighed. "Whatever. You're probably with my bro and he probably put ya in the closet so I wouldn't see you."
Frank flinched. This man was John's brother – one of them…. He didn't know how many he had. Suddenly, the man's face lit up in recognition, and Frank's face paled.
"I know who you are!" he shouted and grabbed Frank. "I bet my brother was intending to take you and hold you for ransom for profit! Well, that ass, he can't do that without me, I'm his brother for God's sake!" he grabbed Frank in a strong grip and pulled him out the door, grabbing a gun and putting it against Frank's waist where it couldn't be seen.
"Come with me," he ordered. Frank groaned inwardly.
I'm going to be kidnapped again, He thought sadly. He shook his head and tried to ignore the throbbing pain in his right arm as John's "brother" dragged him out of the apartment.
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Ten days missing
It had been ten days since Frank had been missing. Don's team had come down from L.A., but was making no progress. Each of the members – David, Megan and Colby – were staying in the Hardy's house as well.
True, it was harder to work, not being in their office with their equipment, but they had their computers, Fenton's laptop and Fenton's files. Joe was sitting, going through files as well, and he was quiet (an event, which, Fenton assured Don, didn't happen very often.)
"Hey," Megan said. "I found something."
Don, Colby and David gathered around her. "He purchased a hotel room at 9:59 six days ago…."
Joe glanced up. "That's the same time he let me go," he said, glancing at the document. "If he was a normal criminal, he wouldn't dare purchase a hotel room so quickly and closely… So he had to know someone there," Joe said with a sinking feeling in his stomach. If he knew someone in a run-down motel, who knew how many people he'd talked too…
"What are the chances he's still there?" Colby muttered.
"Actually, statistically, there's a pretty good chance –" Charlie started, but Colby held up his hand and groaned.
"Don't answer that," he muttered. "Let's check it out."
Joe jumped off the chair. "I'm coming with you."
"No, it could be dangerous," Don said. "He already has your brother – what makes you think he won't grab you if he gets the chance?"
Joe's face blushed red for an instant, and then it passed. "Because I believed him," he said. "He doesn't want revenge on me. Just Frank."
"You can't come with us, Joe. You're not an FBI agent."
"But Charlie's going, and he's not an FBI agent," Joe protested.
Charlie glared at him. "I'm going because I need to calculate the ---" Don put up his hand and looked at Joe.
"You and Charlie can both come," he said, "but you need to wait in the car until the hotel is cleared. Understood?"
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"You don't understand!" The manager told Don. "I'm trying to run a business here, not a sleepover party – you can't just bust in and search all the rooms without a warrant!"
"We have a warrant!" Don yelled, slamming the paper down in front of him. "We're not looking to search all of your guest's rooms. Just one in particular…"
Out of the corner of his eye, Don saw someone, looking scared. Jeans and a white sweater – wasn't that what Frank was wearing when he went missing? --- and the guy with him stood entirely too close.
"Excuse me, sir –" Don said, grabbing his picture of Frank as he walked over to the man. A few steps before he got there, he stopped.
The guy's face was entirely too calm, and Don could tell the kid was scared. He didn't like what he was seeing. Grabbing his walkie-talkie, he whispered to Megan, "Megan, get me SWAT now."
