Chuck finished checking out at the convenience store. He got extremely frustrated with the old woman who has helping him. It took her forever to ring him up. He just shrugged it off. He bought two plain heavy coats. They were hideous and nothing that he or Blair would ever wear, but they were warm. He figured they could keep them for souvenirs. He also bought a backpack, some trail mix, beef jerky and bottles of water. He felt so rustic.
Chuck decided to shove his jacket, and the food and water in the backpack before he met Blair. He carried Blair's jacket because she was probably already cold. As he was walking, Chuck searched the parking lot for his wife. He did not see her.
"Blair? Where are you? Probably brushing your hair," He mumbled to himself. Then he remember that she was going to try an get a distance shot of the ruin for Cyrus. He saw a sign that directed him to the path to the ruin and followed it until he came to the plateau where Blair had been.
"Blair? Honey?" He called, but had no reply. She had been there, he knew it, he could smell her perfume. Chuck looked further down the path and didn't see her. He was very confused because she would not have left without him. Something caught his eye, it was bright pink in the middle of a browns and greens. It was Blair's passport.
Chuck clutched it to his chest. Where was she? He looked down at the place where he found her passport. He saw deep footprints, then a bunch of shallow half footprints. His heart sunk to the pit of his stomach. Something was terribly wrong.
He looked down at his cell phone, "Shit! No signal." He decided he would wait. Maybe she had gone too far and got lost and would come back looking for him.
xoxoxoxo
Blair followed Cade deeper into the wilderness. Horace had a gun to her back. She prayed silently, as tears streamed down her cheeks, for Chuck to come and find her. She just kept feeling her wedding band and running her finger around the large diamond of her engagement ring. Oh how she wished for Chuck to save her.
"Horace! Take over the lead!" Cade snapped. Horace did as he was told and took the lead. "You doin' okay, Jonah?"
"Yes, Pa, " Jonah answered. Earlier, he had shoved Blair's purse into his backpack, but he pulled a few of the contents out and placed them in the pockets of his baggy and dirty jeans. His pants were so ruined, that one could not tell by looking that he had stuff inside his pockets. One of the items, was Blair's eyelash curler. Jonah looked carefully that his father and cousin weren't watching, and casually let the curler slip from his fingers.
"There ain't no reason to cry, Missy. I have no intention of harming ya or making ya doing somethin' against your will. You belong to me now, and you is under my protection," Cade smiled.
"That is very comforting, thank you," Blair scoffed. She crossed her arms and continued to walk.
"What's your name?" Cade asked calmly.
"Why don't you just make one up?" Blair gave him her best bitchy smirk.
"I've had just about enough of your smart mouth! What's your name?" The older man demanded as he roughly grabbed Blair's arm.
"You said you wouldn't hurt me," Blair cried. She wanted Chuck so much.
"I'm sorry. I guess your behavior is only natural. I ain't gonna hurt ya," Cade vowed, and then laughed a little. He hoped to make her more easy about being kidnapped.
Blair shook her head. She decided that it was better for him to call her by her name then to have to listen to his endearments, "My name is Blair."
"Good girl. I can see you're gonna be tough, but I will break ya in like a stubborn horse. I know deep down you're attracted to me already, but I ain't gonna force ya. I want you to be my woman on your own accord." Cade pulled a cowboy hat out of his backpack, camping gear. He tipped his hat to Blair that walked faster to talk to Horace.
Blair closed her eyes and curled her lips in absolute disgust. Cade made her skin crawl. She felt some comfort, but not very much, in that he said he would not force her to do anything. "Please save me, Chuck, please." She whispered to herself for she did not want Cade or Horace to hear.
Jonah, however, heard her. That poor young woman he thought. She reminded him of his mother. He knew what Cade was. Cade would be easy on her for now, then he would lose his patience. Jonah put his hand in his pocket and retrieved Blair's lipstick. He slowly let it fall to the ground.
xoxoxoxo
Chuck waited on the plateau for a good hour. He kept standing in different directions, hoping to get a signal on his phone. He was so worried that he couldn't stand it. He finally left the plateau and sprinted to the police station.
He burst into the station, he should have been completely out of breath, but his adrenaline rush was too great. "I...I-I need help! My wife is probably lost. I need help finding her," Chuck shouted to an elderly female secretary.
"Just a minute, dear," The woman ever so slowly turned to pick up her rotary phone. She moved like molasses when she turned the old fashioned dial.
"Come on, MOVE!" Chuck shouted at the old bat.
"Son, why don't you calm down," A different secretary said.
"I will NOT calm down! My wife is missing! She isn't used to this nature crap! She may have fallen and broken her neck. What kind of police station is this?" Chuck was infuriated with these secretaries. Could they not understand what was going on?
"What do you mean your wife is missing?" A middle aged police officer came to where he was standing. "Where did she go?" The officer looked serious and very concerned.
"We were going to go hiking to the native ruin. She went to a small plateau out there to take pictures. I haven't seen her since. God forgive me, I'm so stupid. I'm so stupid. She is not an outdoorsy type, I should have insisted that we stay together." Chuck put his head in his hands.
"How long has she been missing?" The officer asked.
"About an hour and a half," Chuck shook his head. "I am not waiting 24 hours, I need a search party now, I don't care what it costs."
"Look. I am more than just a little worried about your wife. I'm afraid she may have been kidnapped by Cade and his crew," The officer said solemnly.
"Who the hell are they?" Chuck demanded with clenched fists.
The officer lead the young man to a bulletin board. He pointed to a wanted sign, "Cade Lee, Horace Young, and Jonah Bernard. Cade is the leader, he says that Jonah is his son and Horace is his nephew but they ain't. They are kids he's picked up from women he has kidnapped in the past. I don't know anything about Horace, but Jonah is my nephew. Cade kidnapped my sister long ago." The officer shook his head.
"Okay, since this maniac has a habit of kidnapping young woman, you think you could have posted a sign somewhere that warned us?" Chuck barked and banged his fist against the wall.
"The town voted against it because they think it will decrease tourism," The officer stated reluctantly.
"GEE! I wonder why!" A very livid Chuck had lost his mind and was about to kill someone.
"Son, please calm down. I will call my crew, and we will do everything we can to find your wife," The officer placed a hand on Chuck's shoulder, but he shrugged it off.
"But you can't guarantee me anything," Chuck shook his head and threw his arms in the air.
"Look, son, there is more that you need to understand about Cade. He is a Mountain Man. He has thoroughly trained the two boys he raised. They live off the land. They come up once a year to steal the supplies they need. Cade is wanted for four different murders, two kidnappings, and a series of rapes." The officer explained.
"It sounds as if he is a repeat offender, so why hasn't anyone caught him and his disciples yet?" Chuck pressed. He was angry, worried, and wanted answers.
"Cade knows this part of the country better than anyone, natives included. If we worked 24/7, 365 days a year, we still wouldn't find all of his hiding places," The officer sighed and cracked his knuckles.
"We need to go now. I am not going to let this son of a bitch have her without a fight. I don't care how long it takes, I will find my wife. The only thing that will stop me is my own death," Chuck burst outside for fresh air. He pinched the bridge of his nose and squeezed his eyes shut, "Hold on, Baby. I'm coming for you.
xoxoxoxo
The kidnappers had stopped to camp for the night. Blair found the cleanest rock she could and sat on it. She looked down at her rings and began to think of Chuck.
"Where are we going, Chuck?" Chuck pulled her through a crowd of people and into an elevator.
"We are going to the top of the Eiffel Tower to look down on all of the commoners below us," Chuck teased and kissed his girl friend's nose.
"You are terrible, but such a good kisser," Blair pulled Chuck down so she could kiss him. Her kisses started off small, but the soon became deeper and more intimate.
"Are you saying that you will keep me then?" He teased and pulled her into a warm hug. They stood in each others embrace until the elevator doors opened to let them out.
"We've been on top of the Eiffel Tower a hundred times, why were you keeping it a secret?" Blair inquired.
"Paris is often called the city of love. What better way to declare my love than to overlook this beautiful city," Chuck guided Blair to the guard railing so they could get a good look at the city. Blair placed both of her hands on the railing and looked out. Chuck wrapped is arms around her from behind and whispered that he loved her over and over again.
Blair turned in his arms and then put her arms around his waist. She rested her cheek on his chest and closed her eyes, "I love you, too." She whispered.
Chuck closed his eyes and inhaled her scent for a moment, but then decided it was best to get down to business. He broke their embrace and took Blair's hands in his. As she looked up at him, he spoke, "You know that I love you, and you just professed to love me, so that is a good sign. We've been together these last 4 years, and we started fooling around long before that." The couple laughed and Chuck continued, "I want you forever. I hope that you want me." He kissed both of her hands and got down on one knee. He paused for a moment, apparently the butterflies in his stomach were trying to kill him. He closed his eyes, regained his courage, and pulled a small velvet box out of his pocket. He opened it and showed Blair the beautiful, Harry Winston diamond ring that lay inside. "Will you marry me?"
"Yes! I love you so much! I've been waiting for this!" Blair squealed as Chuck placed the ring on her finger. Blair suddenly found herself air born; Chuck picked her up and whirled her around in excitement.
Chuck's stomach was finally at ease. She said yes. He took her face in both of his hands and kissed her soundly. Then he kissed her nose and forehead.
Blair paused for a moment to look at her beautiful engagement ring, "I must say, when Serena described it to me, she didn't fully explain how beautiful this ring is," Blair smiled at the ring, then she realized what she had done and quickly covered her mouth.
"Did Serena tell you? I'm going to kill her!" Chuck instantly wanted to strangle his big-mouth sister.
"No, Chuck..."
"Whatcha smilin' at?" Horace snickered.
Blair felt like vomiting at the sight of his teeth. She could smell his breath and body odor as well, "None of your business," She rolled her eyes at the imbecile in front of her.
"Youse ain't never gonna see your city boy again. Might as well face facts," He burst out laughing. He truly thought it was a big joke.
Blair scoffed and turned her back to Horace. She looked down and said the Lord's Prayer silently to herself. She prayed for the strength to survive. She prayed for Chuck's safety, and for him to find her. Blair knew that her husband would not give up on her.
Out of nowhere, Blair felt a grimy set of hands grab her. Horace threw her to the ground and climbed on top of her.
"GET OFF OF ME!" She screamed and began struggling beneath him. She fought hard against his gripping hands and his mouth. She finally got a hand free and slapped him across the face.
"Get the hell offa her!" Cade boomed and lifted Horace up by the hair on the back of his head. He threw Horace down on the ground and kicked him twice in the stomach.
Blair quickly got up, but she was too frightened to make a run for it.
"I told ya. You are under my protection. No one will harm and hair on your head," Cade told her and kicked Horace in the stomach again.
Blair nodded silently and wiped the tears from her eyes.
"What the hell were ya thinkin'?" Cade asked Horace.
"It ain't what it looked like. I tripped and fell on her. I swear, Uncle Cade," Horace pleaded.
"You better be tellin' the truth. Now git!" Cade barked and then spit on the ground.
"Please find me, Chuck," Blair whispered to herself.
xoxoxoxo
Chuck waited an excruciating 45 minutes for the officer to get his men together. He was hoping Blair was not hurt. He would kill the Mountain maniacs, if they harmed her. Chuck, the officer (Officer Cano), and his men were now on the plateau where Blair's passport was found. Chuck walked in the direction of the footprints.
"Where you going, Son?" Officer Cano asked.
"Her passport was found over here. These footprints lead this way," Chuck pointed to the ground.
"Son, that is just heavy forest that way. It's more likely they took this clear path," The officer pointed to the path.
Chuck couldn't believe it. This is what passed for police officers in this town? No wonder they couldn't catch Cade, they were obviously allergic to common sense.
"Yes, sir. As you pointed out, these men have survived in the wilderness for decades. Based on that fact that you, yourself, stated to me, I don't really think that it is necessary for them to have a clear path. Her passport was here, and the footprints clearly go this way," Chuck pressed.
"Son, why don't you let the police do police work," Officer Cano stated in a mocking tone.
"Don't call me son, I am an adult and a married man. Besides, this isn't police work, its common sense," Chuck hissed. "Oh Blair, baby, please be okay," He thought silently. Then he looked up and noticed that Officer Cano and his men just ignored him. He also noticed that they left their weapons unguarded and were not paying attention. Chuck quickly and quietly grabbed a hand gun and 3 packs of bullets. He placed them in his backpack. Then he took off running in the correct direction.
"Hold on baby, I'm coming," Chuck said aloud as he ran.
Did you like it? Review if you want more!
A/N: PLEASE READ!
I read a review earlier from someone who was offended because they felt I was stereotyping Canadians.
I would like to apologize to that person, but also plead my case.
I just wanted to point out that I have been to Vancouver, BC several times and I am very well aware that Canada has major metropolitan areas just like the United States. In fact, members of my family live in Vancouver and also in Toronto. Just because the part of Canada that Chuck and Blair are in is rural, doesn't mean that I am stating that all of Canada is rural.
The 2 men in my story are psychopaths (Jonah isn't). I am in no way stating that all Canadian men are psychopaths.
Also, the men in my story are uneducated, so they talk like they are uneducated. I am in no way stating that all Canadians are uneducated. I did not even know that it is a stereotype for Canadians to be uneducated. In fact, my Canadian uncle, who lives in Vancouver, has a Phd and is a professor at a university. His wife is a doctor. My relatives who live in Toronto are also college educated. So really, I didn't know that was a stereotype.
The three men are based on American characters from an American television show.
If I did offend anyone, I am sorry.
