Ok so this chapter isn't as long as I'd intended it to be because I'm finding it hard to get time to write now that I'm back to school. I'll try get the next chapter up next weekend. Lot's of action to come :) This chapter's kinda just a launcher for the next part in the storyline. Thanks again to everyone that reviewed/followed/ favourited.

Joe's eyes followed the car as it sped off, zooming out of sight within seconds. His body shook as a tear escaped his eye while the rest of his body stood frozen, unable to move. The sound of a car horn snapped him back into reality and he jumped aside as a large jeep pulled off. He tore into the gas station, pushing the male customer at the counter aside roughly in his haste,

"That woman that was just in here," he gasped, his pupils dilating and his forehead wet with a cold sweat, "who was she with?"

The old man at the counter looked confused and slightly afraid as Joe's voice rose,

"Who was she with?" he repeated darkly, now gripping the counter so hard that his knuckles appeared white,

"The small one, with brown eyes?" he asked hesitantly

Joe nodded frantically, his eyes pleading for more information,

"She was with a guy..."

"Did she say anything to you?" Joe choked, locking eyes with the cashier who shook his head sorrowfully,

"I'm afraid not. I hardly got a glimpse of her face," he said apologetically, "Am I missing something?"

Joe took a deep breath and squeezed his fingers to his eye lids, "she went missing 6 months ago," he answered lowly, "we had a memorial today… all this time… I thought she was gone forever...I thought she was dead."

At this point it was clear that Joe was talking to himself and quite unaware of the worried looks the cashier and the few customers were giving him,

"What's was her name?" the man behind Joe asked cautiously

"Lauren… Lauren Lopez," he said steadily, "it was her…. I swear it was her."

"I'll call the police," the man said without hesitation, pulling out his phone and dialling 911. Joe felt a tender hand on his shoulder and turned to see the old man's kind face watching him,

"I'm sorry. I didn't realise…" he started

Joe stared out the window at the traffic flashing past, almost in a blur,

"Did she looked scared?" Joe asked, his voice catching in his throat.

"I really don't know," the cashier replied honestly, "She was very subdued… perhaps a little nervous."

Joe nodded and felt his fists clench. If he'd only gotten there a few minutes sooner, he could have gotten her back. The fact that a memorial for her was currently being held only a few miles away while she was clearly very alive made Joe want to laugh and cry at the same time. He felt his phone vibrate in his pocket and pulled it out to see a text from Darren,

"You ok man? Don't do anything rash. Come back to the theatre or even meet us back at the manor. Let us know you're ok at least."

His thumb lingered over the call button. Should I call them? I tiny part of him harboured doubts that it had really been her. What if he'd imagined the whole thing?

He didn't have time to linger on the thought. The police arrived minutes later and immediately started taking statements from the small group of people clustered together at the front of the shop. Lauren's case was well known amongst the Chicago Police department and he recognised the few officers present.

"Sir? If you could take a look at some CTV footage and confirm the identity of the missing person."

Joe nodded numbly and followed the grey haired police officer through to a small room behind the shop counter. Joe stood next to him as he rewound the blurry black and white footage on the screen in front of them. He leaned forward as the video paused and he saw footage of a black car parked outside the shop. A minute later he saw a man and a woman approach it. The woman's physique certainly matched Lauren's, she was thinner, but identical in height and stature. However the woman's face was facing away from the camera,

"Have you any CTV inside your store?" the officer asked, as the old man hobbled in.

"Yes, it's just behind the cash register," he replied, turning on a second monitor.

Joe held his breath as the video rewound again. It stopped and Joe had to take a deep breath as all his uncertainties were washed out the window. It was her, there was no doubt about it. There was no sound to the footage, but he watched avidly, his eyes glued to her. For a second she lifted her head and seemed to almost stare directly into the camera lens before glancing away,

"That's her," he said, his voice coming out raspy.

The policeman nodded affirmation and got up, "we'll need to get copies of this footage for evidence," he stated, before getting up. He stopped and put a hand on Joe's shoulder. He had remnants of a southern accent coming through when he spoke,

"Sir, I've been on this case from the start and I promise you I will try my very best to get that young girl back home safe. When I first started out on the force, my very first case was similar to this one. We never found that girl. I retire at the end of this year and when Lauren's case appeared on my desk 6 months ago I thought it was God pulling a sick joke on me. I'm not going to let that circle complete it's course."

Joe swallowed, unsure of what to say however the officer seemed to accept his silence and excused himself to go consult with his colleagues.

Joe played back the material, re-watching Lauren's little glance up at the camera over and over again. He watched the way her hair swayed around her face and the way she twiddled her thumbs together as she waited behind her 'keeper'. Joe finally looked closely at the face of the man with her. The image was grainy and it was difficult to see a close up, but he was certain it was the same guy that had been on the train that day… the same guy that had pointed a gun in the faces of so many innocent people,

"What did you make of this guy?" Joe asked gruffly, startling the old cashier who appeared to have dozed off slightly in the chair beside him,

"Am… He didn't say much… Although, perhaps a little overprotective of her. He was clearly the more domineering of the two. Even I could see that…but not aggressive in any sense," he dithered, "as I said, they didn't spark any suspicion. I just presumed they were a normal couple."

At the mention of the word couple, Joe felt his chest tighten. The thought of Lauren involved romantically with a killer chilled him to the bone. He felt his phone vibrate again and saw he had 14 new messages from the other, all voicing similar words of comfort and concern. He had to tell them. He dialled Joeys number and looked at the screen for a moment before hitting the call button. Of them all, Joey had maintained the most hope that Lauren was still alive and Joe knew he was more likely to get a fair hearing from him,

"JOE! Thank God! Where…"

"She's not dead," he interrupted coming up against a dead silence on the other end of the line,

"I saw her. There is CTV footage…. She'd not dead," his voice trailed off, now waiting for a response.

"And you're certain it was Lo?" Joeys voice came shakily,

"Joey... it was her. Trust me, I would recognise her face anywhere... It was Lauren."

"I'm on my way. Where are you?"

Joe breathed a sigh of relief before giving Joey the details and cutting off the call. Although she was still in danger, Joe felt something he hadn't felt in months, hope.

Lauren tried to calm the pandemonium that was currently the inside of her head,

"I thought you were hungry?" Shane asked, his eyes darting to the untouched sandwich on her lap,

"Not anymore," she mumbled, turning away and looking in the side car mirror at traffic behind them as they sped down the highway,

"How long more?" she asked numbly

"I'm not sure, maybe 6 or 7 hours. I think I might stop at a motel for the night and get some sleep," he answered, placing a hand on her thigh and rubbing slow circles with his thumb, "You seem awfully quiet."

"Just tired. I think I'll go back to sleep for a while."

Shane nodded as Lauren faced away and closed her eyes. She knew that sleep was an unimaginable luxury that she'd never get but by faking, she was avoiding any questions that could be asked.

Thanks guys, please review and let me know what you thin 3