I Officially Hate Kidnappers

Kaitlyn

I looked at Macie in concern. Of course, she still wasn't my favorite person in the world, but having somebody tell you that you're mom had just been kidnapped and that you were the intended target couldn't be fun. I was concerned about my aunt, too. I wasn't happy that she had had decided to do charity work instead of spending time with us, but I realized that she probably hadn't shown because she had been kidnapped. Smart thinking, I thought sarcastically.

"Hi. She, she was what? I was what?" Macie murmured to Carmen, still in a daze. She looked like she was still trying to process the news.

"Hello," Carmen said with a curt nod. Her eyes flickered around the room until they landed on Felix and her brother. They were staring at the four of us, waiting for something to happen. What they were waiting for, I don't know. Boys can be such idiots sometimes.

"How long do you think it will take them to bring Mathew and Jamie back?" I asked Emma.

"I'm not sure. We, um, usually don't do this type of thing. I would guess about an hour or so." she finally said decisively. I guess she hasn't been around these people long enough to know for sure, I thought, but I trusted her judgment anyway.

"If they even touch them…" I say, but the threat carried without words. I had protected my brother and sister as long as I was able, and I wasn't about to stop now. I couldn't help but worry. Had they heard the crash? Were they awake and scared, wondering where their older sister and cousin were?

"We should probably take you to your rooms now." Cameron said briskly, walking up beside his sister. He sounded like he wanted to get rid of us.

I raised my eyebrows at this. "What do you mean 'rooms'?" I asked him. They could've been taking us back to the infirmary we were in earlier or we could be headed toward a prison cell, neither were acceptable options.

"He means the room you and Macie will be temporarily staying in," Emma said smiling. She glared at Cameron. I didn't know why. Again.

Carmen grabbed my arm and I glared at her, but she didn't let go. I was mentally debating on trying to fight back when she loosened her grip. A little. I'm guessing Felix was the one who grabbed Macie because in the next second I heard an Irish, "Bloody hell!"

I snickered and I heard the other girls laughing too. Macie was glaring at Felix who had claw marks on his arm. She may not always know what she's doing, but you've got to give the girl her props for attacking Felix.

"We'll send somebody as soon as your siblings arrive," Cameron said drily without eye contact as we walked behind him. After he held his hand on a sensor, two doors opened like an elevator.

Before I could protest, we were pushed into the room and the door were slid shut behind us.

"At least they didn't lock us in." Macie told me, her crystal blue eyes disbelieving.

I nodded. "Now what are we supposed to do? Just sit here and wait?" I said angrily.

"At least now we don't have to rely on your lock-picking skills to get out. Not that we should leave anyway." Macie said, trying to lighten the mood in her own way. It didn't work. It just made me angrier. At her and who ever had brought us here.
I scowled at her. "Why would you even say that? Do I look like a criminal to you?" I demanded.

"From what I hear, you're always getting in trouble at school and at home. Apparently, you don't pick the right friends. If you know what I mean." she said casually. We hadn't even been in there for five minutes, and she was already trying to start a fight. Of course, it's nothing new.

"You don't know anything about me or what I do!" I told her. At that point I was beyond mad and angry, I was furious. She knows absolutely nothing about me! She isn't the one who has had to take care of her little brother and sister since they were little. She isn't the one that got into trouble for trying to help them. I thought angrily.

I saw her eyes widened in surprise at my words. We haven't been friends since we were little, but we almost never fought. We tended to just stay out of each others' way. Play it safe.
We stared at each other and tension began to fill the room. It was so heavy that if anybody had walked into the room at that moment, they probably would have choked to death. Then, Macie sat daintily on one of the two beds in the room, never taking her eyes off of mine. I plopped on the bed across from her. Neither one of us were admitting defeat, more like admitting a tie.

"If we want some answers, then we'll have to work together." Macie said looking at me. I knew she was right, but it was going to be hard. We were both going to have to try really hard.

"Okay. First question, who were they talking about earlier?" I asked her, even though I already knew the answer. I didn't even pretend to be subtle because subtly was just not my style.

"What do you mean?" Macie asked me, clearly thrown off by my brazen reply.

"When we were hiding in the closet, one of the men said something about one of us having this, whatever-it-is, in our blood and the other having 'potential'." I told her. I thought it was her because she just seemed to fit the profile more than I do. Obviously, this whatever-it-is requires a painful amount of rules and I think all of those rules are expected to be followed, all of the time. She was also just so 'cookie-cutter perfect'. Good grades, great family, amazing friends.

"Isn't it obvious?" she said blinking. I frowned at her. So now she wanted to be mean and vain about it, while trying to prove that she was smarter than I was. I was readying a reply, when she added on to her thought. "It's obviously you."

"…That makes absolutely no sense," I said after a moment of silence. I was a little bit proud though. She actually thought that I was special at something.

She rolled her eyes at my response. "Think about it. Your parents are never home," I glared at her and she shrugged apologetically, "and that would explain all of the trips and how long they take. Maybe they aren't business trips at all! Besides, you are much more athletic than I am. You would definitely be better at this than me."

I considered the possibility. Macie's reasoning did make sense. "Let's say that's true. It still doesn't explain why they came to your house and not mine," I said.

"Maybe they've been watching us." she cried as she let out a gasp. We shared a look before laughing. "Maybe I've been reading too many crime novels!" she laughed and I nodded.

"I've read some of those, but I think the T.V. explains it better. You can actually see what they're talking about." I told, her wrinkling my nose. She just shook her head, sending her long, caramel colored hair all over her face.

"I'm getting a little hungry," Macie said clutching her stomach a bit dramatically. I laughed at her theatrics. It dawned on me how much I missed this; the way we used to joke around. How we used to be like best friends, sisters even.

"Me too," I agreed. My stomach growled, agreeing with me and we both cracked a smile.

"Now…we need a plan to get out of this...place," I said, gesturing around me. "and we need one fast before the high ranking people come back, but we still have to wait for Jamie and Mathew." I told my cousin.

She shrugged her shoulders before speaking. "Why do we need to get out? They don't seem like they want to hurt us. They have been really nice. Besides, there are way more of them than there are of us, we wouldn't stand a chance."

"That's what all kidnappers want you to think. Plus, they need us, that's the only reason they agreed to go get Jamie and Mathew." I told her like it should be obvious, which to me it was.

"I guess…" Macie said reluctantly. "I just think we should stay put for awhile. I don't want to get lost or screw it all up, or get ourselves kidnapped. Again." she said, putting extra bitterness into the last two words.

I got up and walked over to her. "We'll get your mom back, without or without these crazies' help," I said to her positively. Macie smiled her thanks, but there was a glint in her now ocean blue eyes that said she thought there was something more to this.

She was about to say something, but was interrupted by the sound of voices out in the hall. We both got up, and I smiled at her.

"That would be Jamie and Mathew," Macie said smiling brightly. I returned her smile and walked to the door.

We walked up to the door. I stood directly in front of the door and Macie was slightly behind me.
The door made a swishing sound as it opened. And there stood Emma, Felix, Cameron, and Carmen all looking a little uneasy and forlorn.

"What it is?" Macie and I asked at the same time. I'm sure that we would have both done something to add to our statements so that we didn't seem the same, but the solemn air was too contagious.

I looked from face to face, finally settling on Carmen's. I respected her, I guess and I hoped that she respected me too. It was Felix who spoke, much to my surprise.

"We sent some people to go and get your brother and sister. They just got back. Jamie and Mathew weren't there."

I stared at him confused. I opened my mouth to ask him where they could be, but he continued before I could ask.

"We think they've been kidnapped."