Saving Private Jeanette - Chapter Seven "The Most Beautiful Sight I've Ever Seen"

Miss Miller paced back and forth in her living room, biting her nails, while Dave sat on the sofa, fiddling his thumbs, both of them awaiting for more instructions from the police.

"I'll never forgive myself if anything happens to my baby," Miss Miller said out loud, not really directing to either herself, nor Dave, "my sweet, precious, little angel..."

Dave didn't respond. He couldn't think of anything to say to make Miss Miller feel better.

"David..." Miss Miller continued, "you know what Jeanette did for me this past Mother's Day?"

Dave shook his head, "I have no idea."

"She wrote me a sonnet..." she told him, as she walked over to the mirror of the halltree, where she had it sitting. "Just listen to this..."

Miss Miller began to recite the sonnet Jeanette wrote for her for Mother's Day.

Every girl in the world deserves a mother.
You are a mother like no other.
When my sisters and I had nowhere else to go.
You took us in with you and let us know.
That you are a mother who will love us dearly.
And you love each one of us very sincerely.
Sometimes we may not show it, but we love you too.
Our love for you is strong, everlasting, and true.
A mother is the most important person to a girl.
I know I can come to you when I have no one else in the world.
You are the greatest mother ever.
My love for you will go on forever.
Thank you for being there for me.
You fill my life with wonder, joy, and glee.

Miss Miller started crying.

"That was so beautiful." Dave complimented.

"Just like her," Miss Miller said through her tears, "only a beautiful soul like her's could write something so heartfelt like this... and to think I may never see her again..."

Miss Miller held the paper up to her heart, and continued to cry.

"We'll get her back," Dave told her, "I'm sure of it."

"Oh David," Miss Miller sobbed, "why be optimistic about this? There's no way we can get ten million dollars to get my baby girl back..."

The doorbell rang, so the distraught Miss Miller answered it, and saw the police had returned.

"We've got the ten million dollars." The captain told her.

"What?!" Miss Miller shrieked.

Alvin's red baseball cap was nearly full of the same cigarette butts that the rescue party were trailing. Without realizing Simon walked into a small patch of grass where he found a pile of the butts.

"Somebody's got quite the addiction here." He said.

"Uh, Simon?" Brittney spoke up.

"What?" He asked.

"Look..."

Simon stood up and surveyed the surrounding. He had lead them to a very run down, rancher house, hardly any yard, absolutely no leaves on the tree out front, all kinds of boxes and assorted other junk cluttering the carport, which is why he found the car was parked in the driveway, and that the pile butts was right where the driver would toss them when he's finished as he got in and out of his car.

"You think this is it?" Eleanor asked.

"I don't know," Simon said, "but I have a hunch..."

Simon got on the driveway, and observed the tires of the beat up car.

"These tires look like the tracks we found on the street back there..." he concluded.

"This has to be it!" Brittney squealed.

Jeanette may have been hurt, but it was clear that she needs to be kept alive, her kidnapper could tell Jeanette hadn't eaten in over twenty-four hours, and that her energy was wasting away. That's when he stepped out of the house.

"There he is!" Simon whispered to the others, as he motioned for them to duck behind the setup of trashcans at the end of the driveway. They watched quietly as this man got into his car, pull out of the driveway, and drive off. For where? Unbeknownst to them, he was going to grab some burgers for Jeanette and himself.

"Now's our chance!" Simon told them.

"How do you want to do this?" Brittney asked.

"Okay... Alvin, Theodore, and I will keep watch out there, while you girls step inside, and try to find Jeanette." Simon related to them. "If anything goes wrong, whistle three times, that will be the signal for us to get out of here, and quickly.

"Got it!" Eleanor responded.

"Let's do it!" Simon commanded.

The five of them emerged from their hiding spot. Simon went around back, Alvin headed for the front door, while Theodore went around to the other side of the house. Brittney stepped through the front door, followed by Eleanor.

"Jeanette!" Eleanor called out, before Brittney placed her hands over her mouth.

"Shh!" Brittney whispered. "You don't know who else might be in here!"

"Right." Eleanor whispered back.

Brittney and Eleanor stepped out from the front hall, and into the living room. The house was a mess. They could tell a single man lived here.

"Eleanor?" Brittney whispered. "You check down that side of the house, I'll check this side."

"Got it." Eleanor whispered back.

Eleanor quietly made her way down the hallway, while Brittney stepped into the kitchen. Eleanor went through the broom closet, the bathroom, and the two back bedrooms, including the closets, looking for Jeanette. Brittney looked through the pantry, before opening a second door, revealing a staircase down into a dark room. The only light in the room came from the light coming through the window. Brittney gulped before descending the staircase. Once she reached the bottom of the rickety, wooden, she had to pause for a moment, to let her eyes adjust to the darkness. She saw she was in a basement/bedroom, and off to the side was the sight she had been missing for so long.

"It's counterfeit money," the captain told Miss Miller, "but it's the exact amount he wants... this should make him happy..."

"But we're still going to talk to this guy if things get ugly," added the negociator, "which we hope it won't."

"So, are we ready?" Miss Miller asked, hopefully.

"We are." Said the captain, "we've traced the cell phone number to this address, in case he tries to throw us off... call him."

"Okay..." Miss Miller said hesitantly.

The villain was leaving the drive thru at Burger King, when Jeanette's cell phone started ringing, and he saw it was Miss Miller.

"Hello, Miss Miller." He answered.

"Okay..." she cracked into the phone, "I've got your money..."

"You do?" He asked. "What did you do? Rob a bank?"

"What matters how I got it? What matters is that I got your money... now how can I get my baby back?"

"Under the cover of darkness, the exchange will be made at the pier."

"The pier?" She asked, as the police noted the location, realizing it was close to where this guy lived.

"You can drop the money under the lamppost at the end of the pier."

"What about my Jeanette?!"

"You will return to your vehicle. Once I am assured that the money I require is in whatever you have it in, be it a bag, or a suitcase, I will send her on her way."

"Is that it?"

"That's it. Remember, under the cover of darkness." He hung up.

"The pier, after dark." Miss Miller told the police.

Brittney made her way over to her little sister, who appeared to be unconscious, tied to the chair.

"Jeanette?" She asked hesistantly. "Jeanette?" Brittney walked up closer, and caressed Jeanette's cheek with the back of her finger. "Jeanette?"

"Hmm?" Jeanette mumbled as she slowly opened her eyes.

Brittney, very carefully, removed the tape from Jeanette's mouth, as Jeanette breathed a loud sigh of relief. "We're here for you, Jeanette, don't worry..." Brittney stepped around Jeanette, and began to untie her hands from behind the chair. When that was finished, Jeanette began rubbing her wrists, as Brittney helped her to her feet.

"Brittney..." Jeanette mumbled, as she almost fell over on top of her big sister, "Brittney, Brittney, Brittney..." Jeanette used what energy she had left to wrap her arms around Brittney, as Brittney did the same to Jeanette.

"You're going to be okay," Brittney said in a loving tone, "we're going to get you out of here."

Jeanette cried. "Oh Brittney... you're the most beautiful sight I have ever seen..."

"Just being able to see you again is the most beautiful sight I've ever seen." Brittney responded.

Jeanette choked a little, as she continued to cry, burying her face into the scarf around Brittney's neck. Seeing Brittney again, smelling Brittney again, feeling Brittney again, Jeanette almost felt like her old self again, knowing that she had been reunited with her big sister.

"Jeanette," Brittney spoke up, "I'm so sorry for everything I've done... for bossing you around... for treating you like my slave... for hurting your feelings... for... for telling you that you're useless..."

"I don't care about that..." Jeanette mumbled, "please, Brittney, just take me home. I want to go home."

"We'll take you home, Jeanette."

"Oh, Brittney, Brittney, you're an angel of mercy..."

"Oh, Jeanette..." Brittney whispered softly in to her little sister's tender ear, as she slowly kissed her on the cheek. "Can you walk?" She asked her, seeing that her right leg had been wounded.

"I can barely stand." Jeanette mumbled.

Brittney realized Jeanette had virtually no energy. "Don't worry," she assured her little sister, "I'll help you..."

Brittney did just that, as she helped Jeanette towards the staircase.

Out, around the side of the house, Theodore had gathered a few walnuts, and was cracking them open with a cracker he had in his pocket. With his mouth full of chewed up walnuts, he wasn't able to whistle three times, when he saw the kidnapper's car pulling into the neighborhood. He tried, but he couldn't, so he ran over to Alvin, and tried to whistle at him.

"What are you eating?" Alvin asked, slightly annoyed.

Theodore still kept trying to whistle, but he just kept spitting up little chunks of walnuts.

"How can you eat at a time like this, Theodore?" Alvin asked him. "We need to be on the look for..."

Theodore finally swallowed the mouth full of walnuts, and cried out, "Whistle, whistle, whistle!"

Alvin looked up and saw the car approaching the house.

"Aw crap!" He cried, as he grabbed Theodore, and ran into the house. "Eleanor! Brittney! He's back, he's back! We've got to get out of here!"

Eleanor came running out of one of the back bedrooms. "Oh no! Brittney?! Brittney?!"

"We're coming!" Brittney shouted from the bottom of the stairs in the basement.

Alvin, Theodore, and Eleanor ran into the kitchen, and to the open basement door.

"Are you down there?!" Alvin cried.

"We're coming up!" Brittney called back.

"Are you okay, Jeanette?!" Eleanor cried.

"She's tired and hurt!" Brittney called back.

Eleanor ran out the backdoor, as Simon ran towards it.

"I know, I heard!" Simon said. "Did we find Jeanette?!"

"Brittney says she's hurt," Eleanor told him, "I think she's having trouble getting her upstairs!"

"Alright," Simon responded, "you, Alvin, Theodore, get out now!"

"But Simon..." Alvin started.

"You guys save yourselves, I'll help Brittney with Jeanette!"

Simon shoved his way into the house, past Alvin, Theodore, and Eleanor, as they ran out the backdoor. Simon rushed down the stairs to where Brittney struggled to help Jeanette up.

"Come on," Simon said, as he took Jeanette's arm, "we're fighting time."

It was too late. The three of them heard the front door open and shut.

"Oh no!" Brittney yelped.

Jeanette's captor heard that loud, and clear, and made his way over to the open basement door.

"What's going on here?!" He barked, as he looked down to find Brittney and Simon trying to help Jeanette up the stair. "What the hell do you think you're doing?!"

"We're saving my little sister!" Brittney barked back.

"I don't think so." He replied, as his pulled a small handgun out of his jacket pocket, and pointed it directly at her. "Step away from her, or you all get it!"