Chapter 64

A/N A small warning. The next few chapters will be a bit intense. Will include some minor violence.

December 24, 1912 12 P.M.

...

"Where do you think we should leave him?" the raspy one asked, as he looked back at the lump of a person in the back seat. The driver looked, until they came to the police station.

"How ironic." he chuckled, as they pulled into the lot. The heavy-set man got out of the car, swung to the back, then removes the cuffs from the boy's wrist. He pulls Jesse out of the car, then slings the boy over his shoulders as they make their way up the stairs, to a receptionist behind the counter.

"We'll need a few hours hold on this young man." he says.

"Sure. Where did you get him?" the officer asked, getting the keys from a box. They didn't say, as they followed the officer down the corridor, until they arrived to an empty cell. They placed Jesse inside the cell, before the officer closes the bars, and they leave Jesse there, like a common criminal.

Once back in their car, the men congratulated themselves, then laughed.

"We'll tell Cal he's at the police station, awaiting his fate from there." the slender one says, with a sly smile, fiddling with the instruments once more. "Then, we'll get our cut of the money for his capture."

...

3:10 P.M.

Jesse awoke, blinking as he slowly arises from the cold concrete. Cold water dripped on him; he felt nauseous, dizzy as he began to get up from the floor, then slowly paces around his small cell, clutching to his stomach as other inmates gave him wolf whistles. The other inmates thought he was a female, even though he clearly was a man, and was still in his formal wedding tuxedo. He still couldn't believe what had happened to him, as he began to feel a bit dizzy and nauseous even more, and he felt like he wanted to throw up. Eventually he sat in the middle of his cell, as inmates on either side wanted to grab ahold of him, and even one of the men clearly wanted to kiss him.

The cell door squeaks opens, and Jesse looks up. An officer leads another heavy-set man inside the cell, then handcuffs Jesse, before leading him down the corridor. Inmates wolf whistle him once more, while some were calling him defamatory names as he was led out of the jail.

They walk outside, as the heavy man leads Jesse to the car. He opens the door, and pushes him inside. Jesse takes his seat, with difficulty from his cuffed hands. He slowly looks up, hair covering one eye, and sees Cal sitting opposite of him, pouring something in a small glass cup from a green bottle.

"Ah Jess, my good man. At long last we meet again. Care for a brandy?" Cal sneered at him, then tries to hand Jesse the small glass. Jesse only looked at him.

"Talk to me!" Cal yells, then he angrily splashes his brandy at Jesse's face, who spat out the foul liquid. Cal has had enough at this point. He grabbed Jesse by his coat, as Jesse faces the other direction from Cal's ungodly breath. He began to gag, then Cal forcefully throws Jesse back to the seat. Jesse lays on the seat, his hair falling and covering his eyes, as he slowly lays his head down to the leather. Cal angrily grabs a handful of Jesse's thick hair, then pulls his head back.

"You're going to tell me where Rose is, or there's going to be serious consequences if you don't." Cal hisses, then pushes Jesse's head into the leather seat once more. He pours more brandy from his bottle with shaking hands, before he sat back down once more. He was shaking even more as he took a swig of his brandy as he looked out the country side of Pittsburgh. He turned back to the boy once more.

"I'll have your hair cut if you don't tell me where Rose is. Or that gutter rat!" he says, pointing as he held his brandy, before he shakily drank the liquid once more.

They stopped at a small bed and breakfast outside of town, hoping no one would track their whereabouts. The man had a small gun pressed to the small of Jesse's back, as he had his big hand on the man's small shoulder.

"Don't play any games." he says, as he followed his new master into the hotel. "Smile, and no one gets hurt."

Cal plays his usual charms to the young women as the trio makes their way to their room for the night. They get to their room, where Cal places Jesse in a chair, while the large man still had his gun trained on Jesse. Cal ties Jesse to the chair, including his legs, but Jesse wasn't in any mood to fight back. Cal shakes his head in disgust, as Jesse's body was even smaller than the chair he was sitting in, and Cal had a difficult time trying to tie him. Eventually, Cal tied his arms, as he was still cuffed, to the chair, and gagged him.

...

December 26, 1912

Cal slowly wakes up, then blinks as his eyes adjusted to the light coming into the room. The body guard was sitting in a couch, his head was down, his hands were crossed, and he was still holding the gun. He looks to where Jesse had been sitting earlier. Jesse had fallen over on his side sometime during the night. Cal walks over, then rights Jesse back up, then listening if he was still breathing. He was still breathing, but appeared to be unconscious. Cal left him there, with his full head of hair hanging in front of his face. He gets ready for his day.

...

They walk onto the platform of the train depot, as the trio makes their way back to Philadelphia. The large man had his gun carefully placed on the small of Jesse's back as they board the train, and covered, as to not arouse any suspicion from onlookers.

"All aboard!" the conductor shouts, as the train slowly pulls away from the station. It was the day after Christmas and Cal decided to kidnap Jesse so he can try to get some information on the whereabouts of Rose, and possibly lead him to Jack as well.

Back at the Almstead residence everyone tried to comprehend what has happened to their beloved Jesse, as Henry came back from the police station. They were no help there, as they didn't see anyone Henry described was his son, and if there were any chances he was held there. He knew Cal paid his henchmen to stage a fake arrest, just to kidnap his son to get what he wanted. Jack wanted to help, as he had known Cal as well, but Henry advised him not to do so.

"Why not?" Jack asks, as he clearly wanted to help his brother.

"How long have you known Mr. Hockley?"

"Uhm, since the night Rose nearly jumped off the back on the ship."

Henry told him he had been staying with the Dewitt Bukater's for nearly two years, and he knew how dangerous Cal can be, even his father was much worse. In the kitchen, Anna prepared stew and tea, and Marion was still sobbing on the couch, as Jessica comforted her since they came back to the house. A couple days and sleepless nights had gone by since the wedding, and she was still in her wedding dress. She looked up, and saw her nephew walk past, as he too, had been crying. She could clearly see he was shaking from the crying he endured, and tears still streamed his face. Marion quickly grabbed the tot, and hugged him as hard as she could, as if the child was her own son, and cried into his shoulder.

"Maybe you should have worked the mines, eh Henry?" Mr. Almstead chuckled. Henry perks up.

"Eureka!" he snaps his fingers.

"What? You're going to work the mines now?"

Henry gave Mr. Almstead a glaring look. "No! I already have my own mine. And I'm not suggesting a trade either. If I may, Madam Bukater, if I go back to the house…"

Ruth hands him the keys she dug from her purse. Both Jon and Jessica had a worried look, as their father might be up to something no good. Henry knew Cal almost never stays at the house most days, only when he needed to see Rose and at times courted her around Philadelphia. Henry turned for the final time, to his now daughter-in-law, who was still crying, her face buried in her hands now. Her body shook with every sob she made, as she began to fear the worst for her beloved husband. She was supposed to be the happiest with her husband. After the wedding, they had planned on having a large dinner, followed by a Christmas play, and watching carolers sing. Instead, this has become a disaster, as he rubbed away a tear from his eye.

"Jessica! Get your brother to Philadelphia. Tell him we have a bone to pick with Caledon Hockley. This is the final straw! He's messed with the wrong man for the last time!" he says, his voice cracked a little.

Eric quickly ran down the stairs, while he way putting on his heavy jacket, while Jessica tries unsuccessfully to contact Matthew. She knew her older brother hardly stayed at home, as he was often out and about at times. Mr. Highland swallowed, before he volunteered his two eldest sons, while one of them happened to be working with Matthew back in New York, while the eldest worked with him in the mine. Meanwhile Jack had telephoned the hotel back in Albuquerque to send a message to Fabrizio de Rossi, that he was needed in Philadelphia as soon as possible. All of them knew this was a risky, if very dangerous, rescue operation of Jesse, and Jack felt his spine tingling, as he thought this is what both Rose and Jesse had done to rescue him out of danger, and he was returning the favor to Jesse, his best friend and new brother.

December 29, 1912

Back in Philadelphia Cal and his new manservant had Jesse in a room in his father's steel company. Jesse only looked at the man, not saying anything, which was enough for Cal to hit him over. Unfortunately, Cal hit him hard in the head, knocking him unconscious once more. He hit him so hard the chair Jesse was tied to also tipped with him, and Jesse laid on the concrete floor once more.

"I can't get anything out of that little…!" Cal seethed, his fists balled, as he resisted the urge to knock Jesse out even further. His father was getting on him even more, even trying himself to negotiate with Jesse, but the kid just sat there, dazed, not showing any emotion. He took off his gloves, then angrily flung them across the room. He soon had a much better idea; lure Jesse's father to Philadelphia, as he had known him for some time now. Or he can bring in Matthew. Together they would come to Jesse's aid, or make it a ransom if they wanted to get Jesse back.

Cal got back to his office, with his servant sitting across from his desk. Mildred knocks on the door.

"Not now! Can't you see we're busy?!" Cal barks at his secretary.

"I have your papers and coffee, sir." she says.

"Bring them in and get out." Mildred comes in his office, with telegrams, a newspaper and a coffee. Then she slowly closes the door. Cal picks up the papers, the same thing he been getting.

"Is that boy talking yet?"

"Any new information about your fiancé?"

Cal angrily flung his papers, as he knew he can't get Jesse to talk. Then he remembered.

"What if I bring in his family, here in Philadelphia? We'll have a small get-together, at my house. I will play the hero, that Jesse there tried to run from the police, and had suffered bruises and bumps as he was running away?"

"What if his family notices the bruises are not from nature, but from the abuses he's getting from here? And those drivers? Let's not forget the witnesses back at the wedding-" the servant was getting a bit worried. Cal reassured him.

"They won't notice the difference, will they? Besides boys his age gets into all kinds of places that will hurt them, and that child is no exception! Now come. Let us celebrate." Cal got two glasses from his desk, and a bottle of scotch. He pours them both, then a toast, before drinking.

...

Meanwhile in the storage room, Jesse slowly awakes, his head was throbbing in pain. He slowly raises his head off the concrete floor, a long thread of saliva came out of his mouth, and at the same time, he tasted a slight copper feeling in his mouth. He slowly shakes his head, and making his head hurt way more than it needs to. He spat out his saliva onto the concrete floor, then slowly puts his head down again. He tries to make out the room he was in, but his vision cannot come to focus. There was a single light above him, and what appears to be shelves and a small metal table in front of him, but the room was slightly darkened. He tries to look up, but the searing light was too much for his brain to take in. Jesse slowly moves his hands, and notices the ropes were tied a bit loosely around his wrists. He cautiously wriggles his hands until they were free. He slowly presses himself off the floor, but was overcome with weakness. He could feel his legs were still tied to the chair.

Suddenly he heard something outside the room he was in, and realization started to dawn on him. He had a sudden burst of energy, and began to untie his legs from the chair. He got up, as he tried to shake the groggy feeling he was still having. His headache had subsided from searing to just a little annoyance, as he was on attention. It was some time until he realized there was no one outside the room. He wiped his mouth, spat for the last time, then checked the door.

Locked!

He starts looking around the room, anything he could use for a pick. He looks at the lock, to see if he might run into any problems. It was just like the locks back on the ship. Jesse quietly sifts through the measly stuff in the shelves, until he finds a piece of rod. He fashions the piece, then inserts in the lock. Instead he jams the lock, and his heart drops.

Just then he heard someone trying to get in the room, then the person tries to shake the door open. Eventually the person starts banging on the door, but it was too thick to be broken down. He later heard gunshots being fired at the door's lock, then it swung open. Jesse was back on the ground, in the same position he was in earlier, as the large man brings him and the chair upright. He unties Jesse, then puts the pistol into the small of his back again, as they make their way to Cal's office. He knew he would have to play along if he wanted to live, even if he dreaded the idea, but he must not reveal anything on the whereabouts of Rose or Jack.

...

December 30, 1912

Mr. Williams began poking around in his old room back at the former Bukater home, while Jack and Jon looked throughout the house for a weapon they could use to rescue Jesse. Upstairs they heard something being broken into, and they ran up the stairs. Henry had broken into Mr. Bukater's former office, then the three men began searching the room. Jack came across a small pistol in a wooden cabinet, but the bullets were nowhere to be found. Jon finally finds the bullets in one of the large oak desk drawers, and Henry was searching through the books.

Downstairs Ruth, Rose and John later arrived at the house. John went in search of the men, while the women went ahead to their former rooms to salvage what little possessions they could carry. Rose found this a little silly and a waste of time, despite Ruth's dismay, as they began to pack their memories in a large trunk Eric's parents had at the house, and had brought it with them.

Ruth looked tearfully at the dresses she had stored in her wardrobe, the years she collected and even worn to special occasions when her husband was still alive. She silently sobbed, as she pulled down a while cotton laced dress, the dress she wore the day she gave birth to Rose. She sat down on the bed, stroking the lace. She puts the dress to her cheek, stroking the soft cotton where her baby bump once was. She knew this was the perfect dress Rose would be pregnant in, as she would hand it to her.

Rose was standing at the doorway. She couldn't help but see her mother truly in tears, after all the years she spent loathing her mother, she now loved her more than ever. Ruth sees her daughter standing there, tears both falling from their eyes, then they both embraced in the middle of the room. Ruth hands Rose the dress, that her mother made for her before she gave birth to her beautiful daughter. They embraced once more, while crying in each other's arms.

Ruth and Rose came out of the house, followed by Jack and Jon carrying the large box out of the house. The only things they packed were a couple of Ruth's dresses that her mother had made, some early known photographs of her late husband, and the only known photograph they had that was assumed to be Mr. Calvert, Ruth's father and Rose's grandfather, and some family heirlooms. Rose had no memories nor heirlooms of her own; most of the items were from Caledon or his family, and she wanted no part of his future. Jack was loading the gun when he accidentally fired a shot, the bullet shattering the window of the former Bukater home. Everyone flinched, then Jack's face turned red.

"Sorry-" Jack began, but Ruth put a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"That's okay. Rose showed me a way that life is not all about having possessions in the world. We are all put on this earth, to love one another, and to enjoy our short moment of life with one another. Now, go save your friend, and be safe."

Ruth brought the boy into long embrace for the final time, as John and his eldest son loaded the trunk into the car. Ruth looks back at the large building, that her late husband had bought her many years ago. Rose comforted her mother, before getting in the car to start their life anew, one that is filled with happiness and new memories, and a new baby on the way.