When they'd got back to the house, Vince had got straight to bed without so much as a 'hello' to Howard's concerned parents.
"How's he holding up?" Jim asked Alice as Vince disappeared into his room.
"Not good. He's only just stopped crying since he saw the body and he hasn't said a word all day."
"Well, it must have been a terrible shock for him. He doesn't strike me as the most emotionally mature person anyway, and I just can't what he must've gone through waiting for the police to open the bag, waiting to see…"
"I couldn't do it. But… I mean, he should be happy that it wasn't Howard."
"Are you happy?"
"No. I just want to know where he is."
"Exactly, Vince probably feels exactly the same. And now the police have lost all their leads."
"I know." They was a silence for a moment, both thinking about what might have been, until Alice said, "They told me that there're only two reasons why people kidnap."
"Who did?"
"The police. They said people only kidnap for either money or love. They recon if we haven't received a ransom note by tomorrow then it's a love kidnapping and then… well, they're not sure if they'll get any clues at all." Jim ran his hands through his hair and sighed exasperatedly.
"Let's not try to think about things like that. We have to stay positive, for all our sakes."
"Mmm, where's mum?"
"She's in the garden. It's been all over the news all day. I think she had to get away a bit."
"I guess that's the problem with living with someone so famous, no privacy."
"Mmm."
"You know." yawned Alice. "I'm going to go to bed too. Let's hope things get better tomorrow."
--
After days of waiting by the phone, watching Vince slum around the house wearing Howard's shirts and listening to her mother's snide remarks against the young man, Alice was incredibly shocked to find her mum holding Vince in a tight embrace when she came down the stairs in the morning.
"I'm so sorry." The older woman repeated over and over in a strangled whisper. "I didn't realise papers could be that vicious. I thought you were a two timing loser. I've been so mean to you. I can see that you love Howard. I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry."
"It's fine. We need to stick together. It's okay." Vince sobbed. Alice picked up the magazine that had made her mother see sense as it dropped from her hand.
Howard Moon Suicide Causes Family Affair
Last week, it was reported that Howard Moon, ex-partner of rock sensation Vince Noir, has disappeared. Noir insists he was abducted, although the police have said they are not going to rule out, running away and suicide. The latter option becoming more and more likely, after the police tracked Moon's mobile phone to the bottom of the river Thames. However, after extensive combing of the river no body was revealed, although the police say this technique is only 75% effective and that there is a big possibility they will never find the failed jazz musician from Leeds.
It seems that Moon, after finding his partner sleeping with his sister, Alice, decided he couldn't continue in this world anymore. Moon's bed was hardly cold before Noir, ever the opportunist, had moved Alice into his large house. Not only that, Moon's parents have showed support for this new relationship by also moving in with the young couple. Not a typical move for our reckless golden boy of British music but who are we to judge his increasingly complicated private life.
Both Noir and Alice, in an act of pure audacity, arrived at the crime scene by the together and didn't leave each others sides throughout the entire search. We're beginning to wonder whether the new couple would have preferred it if Howard had been found at the bottom of the river. At least then, they wouldn't have to worry about any awkward conversations on his return. Of course with this amount of controversy, the rumour mill's been spinning them out faster than ever; but is there any truth behind the stories that Noir himself hired a hit man to finish Moon off in a replication of the famous Courtney Love/ Kurt Cobain allegations of 1994?
Alice couldn't read anymore. She dropped the paper into the bin and left Vince to be smothered in her mother's perfume-stenched embrace.
--
Weeks past and there was still no news of Howard's whereabouts. The police were still on the case although they'd taken most of their officers off it, claiming the case had 'gone cold'. That was when Vince had decided to do an interview on BBC News as a feeble attempt to get people back on the look out.
"You sure you're up to this?" Alice had asked.
"No." he'd admitted quietly, "But I've got to do something. I'm world famous for God's sake. The media has put out enough rubbish about me, I think they owe me."
"They're going to be there every step of the way now, you prepared for that?"
"They're there every step of the way anyway and I'll do whatever I have to, to get him back."
--
Now, Alice was sat backstage watching a TV screen as the newscaster introduced Vince.
"Vince Noir. Now it's been a few weeks since your partner, ummm Howard went missing. You think he was kidnapped but the police have said this morning that they're stopping the search because they're unlikely to find him. I mean how did you feel when they told you that?"
"Numb. I didn't feel anything. They want to give up because something's difficult. Imagine if we all did that. Nothing would ever get done."
"Absolutely. So, you're here to, well, I suppose raise awareness that Howard's out there. Here's a picture of him for people at home so that they can recognise him and a number at the bottom of the screen to ring if you've got any information at all. Now, Vince. You tell us what happened. There's a lot of conspiracy theories surrounding this whole incident."
"No, conspiracy theories surround me. There's always lies about me in magazines and papers. To be honest with you, it's destroying my life. I think I know how Brittany felt now, just before she shaved her hair off.""Well, I guess this is your chance to set things straight. What really happened, Vince?"
"Well, we were having a bit of tough time, because of all the lies in the papers, and we had a bit of an argument in a club… yeah, that's it." Vince said, as a clip of him rejecting Chad followed by a clip of the northerner leaving the club was shown. "and then, yeah, there you can see him leaving. A while later, I got a text from his phone."
"Ah yes, we have that message hear. Umm, right, so it said: Very clever Vince. People say You're not the smartest person In the world but you picked that up quickly. Howard's fine. He's safe. I've got him with me. I wont hurt him, I love him. More than you ever could. You break his heart. You hurt him, you go behind his back, you upset him. He deserves better. Much better. He deserves me. That sounds terrifying."
Vince nodded.
"Right, so they tracked the phone and found it at the bottom of a river, is that right?"
"Yeah."
"But you don't believe he's taken his own life."
"No, he wasn't weak; isn't weak. He's been taken. I know he has."
"I can't even begin to imagine what you and his family are going through."
"It's hell. I kind of fiery, living hell. I wake up every morning with a sick feeling in my stomach that never goes away. I've got a constant headache. All I want to do is sleep but I can't. And if I do manage to sleep, even a little, I have terrifying nightmares. The only thing that keeps me going is the hope of finding him again." Vince's voice was high pitched and sounded as though he was talking through a bubble but he fought back the relentless tears. He wasn't going to cry on TV.
"And you want everyone to be on the look out."
"Yes, if anybody knows or sees anything, please can they tell the police. Please."
---
Days went by and the police still had no significant leads but now the media were hot on the story; every clue, every half clue and even every dubious theory (which emerged daily) were reported.
"At least they're reporting the truth now." muttered Vince, putting down a paper with a story of someone who'd seed a 6ft 2, moustached, northerner in Leeds town centre.
"And everyone's on your side again." agreed Helen, putting down a plate of ham sandwiches in front of him.
"I can't."
"Try." she urged. "Please. You're my son too now, and no son of mine goes hungry."
"I'm not hungry. I feel sick."
"Keep your strength up, you're already too skinny."
Vince shook his head, pushing the plate away from him decidedly.
Eat something Vince." she ordered with an authority in her voice like Vince had never heard. No one told him to do anything, ever. He did what he wanted and other people bent over backwards until they snapped in half just to accommodate whatever crazy notion he happened to be following at that particular time. He didn't know whether it was out of shock or out of a great sense of 'what's the point' when it came to anything slightly energetic (like arguing over sandwiches), which he'd developed since Howard had gone, but he obediently picked up a triangular sandwich, raised it to his lips and took a tiny bite of the bread.
"There," she smiled, "you'll feel a bit better once you've got that down you."
He nodded silently and continued to nibble at the bread.
"She really likes you now." smiled Alice slyly, once her mother had gone upstairs to clean the house.
"Everyone does. It's part of being this good looking and charismatic. I can't help myself, people meet me and fall in love." Then he smiled at the irony. "Is that a blessing or a curse? I mean in meant I met Howard, but it's also what we were fighting over."
"You know he loved you and trusted you."
"Don't talk about him in the past tense!"
"Sorry, but you do know that, don't you?"
"Yeah."
"I mean, he's just scared because he thinks you're too good for him."
"He thinks I'm too good for him?! Are you joking? I'm an airhead. Take away my talent and my clothes and what d'you get?"
"The man Howard fell in love with."
----
Vince woke up early, as he always did these days, and padded downstairs. There in front of the door were hundreds of letters and sympathy cards off loyal and loving fans. Each one saying pretty much the same thing; 'sorry for everything and we're on the look out for Howard. Head up Vince. We'll find him.' One fan had even written; 'Love like yours and Howard's is as inevitable as the sunrise. You're meant to be together so destiny will find a way to make it so.' That was the only card Vince had kept. It had moved him when he read it and it gave him hope when he was feeling most hopeless. As he was sifting through the new cards, he spotted something that wasn't a card or a letter of support. It was a typed note with no envelope and no address.
Vince,
It's me. I was right you know. Howard hates you. He told me that you were unfaithful. He told me what you did. He doesn't want to be found, so stop looking. He's happy with me. He loves me. We love each other.
He read it and reread it. Over and over again, each word being burned onto his skull. 'hates you' 'loves me' 'stop looking.'
Eventually he stopped reading it, but his brain had cruelly recorded it and was playing it over and over again searching for some clue as to it could be. Vince wasn't sure this constituted as a ransom note? Not really, they didn't want money. That would have been easier. He'd have given anything to have Howard back. He'd have given up all his money. But the psycho didn't want money. They wanted Howard.
He didn't cry, he didn't scream. He'd done enough of that already, instead he calmly rang the police and told them about the note.
It took them over an hour to arrive and when they did, they seemed thoroughly uninspired. Vince gazed at them hopefully, as did the Moon's who'd been woken by the doorbell, but the police man shook his head sorrowfully.
"We can check it for fingerprints, but beyond that, I don't think we'll get anything from it." Vince hadn't expected anything more but it still felt like someone had just grabbed his heart and squeezed it tightly in their fist. "But," the policeman added, "If you get anymore of these, let us know."
"Of course." said Alice.
"Did it come in an envelope?"
"No."
"So it was just shoved through like this?"
"Yes."
"Ah, now that's interesting."
"It is?"
"Mmm, that means the kidnapper is close."