A/N: Thanks once again guys. You are all wonderful :-)

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Chapter Four

Two hours later, Flynn found himself sitting on his own once again. The rising sun fought its way through the broken blinds as he sat staring at the buzzing TV, waiting patiently for King Fergus and Queen Corrine's public appeal to begin. The news of the Princess's disappearance was by far the most talked about subject on every channel. Sighing, Flynn brought the burning cigarette to his mouth, taking a long drag before lying back on the tatty brown couch and blowing a cloud of smoke into the air. There was still no sign of Scott or Mike waking from their comas anytime soon. The words that Rapunzel had used to describe them kept ringing in his mind. Those animals. And as much as Flynn hated to admit it, she was right.

Flicking some ash onto the floor, Flynn took another draw from his cigarette, turning up the TV when the images of Fergus and Corrine entering the conference room filled the screen. The look of despair in their eyes made it difficult for Flynn to watch. As they stared into the camera he felt like they were staring straight at him, knowing what it was that he had done. It was the first time that Flynn had seen the two of them in an informal setting. There were no fancy clothes. No expensive jewellery…There were no masks. Sitting in front of him wasn't a King and Queen. It was two parents desperate to see their daughter again.

They were surrounded by a lot of reporters, flashes from camera's capturing their grief ridden faces as microphones were pushed up under their noses. Many people began shouting their questions at once, Queen Corrine wiping fresh tears from her eyes as her husband wrapped an arm tightly around her shoulder. He looked to be fighting back his own tears as the crowd was ushered to let them speak...plead for information on their daughter's disappearance. After all, there was still no proof that she had been kidnapped.

"Today…is a sad day…" Fergus began, his voice cracking as he continued to stare into the camera "Because today I was informed that my beautiful daughter…My Rapunzel…did not return home last night." More cameras flashed as Corrine began to break down, her hand flying to her mouth to muffle her choking sobs "Today I sit here, not as a King but as a father, appealing to anyone who may hold any information on the whereabouts of our daughter. We ask that the public come forward in helping us find her. We ask that if Rapunzel herself is watching this, that she get in contact...And we also ask, that if anyone is behind her disappearance, that you do not harm her. We ask that you bring her home. Thank you."

The crowd went wild as the King and Queen were led off camera by a police officer, phone numbers flashing across the screen for anyone with information. Sighing once again, Flynn blew the last of his cigarette smoke out before dubbing out the butt. As far as he gathered the cops were still clueless as to the Princess's disappearance, but that was not going to last long. The sooner they got the tape out the way the better.

…

It had been just over thirteen hours since the Princess's disappearance, something that Detective Maximus Guard was growing more and more aware of. He had been standing off on the side lines watching the distraught parents make their appeal, occasionally scanning the crowd for any suspicious looking characters that may be involved. 22 years on the force had certainly taught him that anything was possible when it came down to a Missing Persons case.

He had been the first Detective on the scene and knew the minute that he had stepped out of the car that this wasn't a simple runaway case. Finding the Princess's pink stilettos had only confirmed that for him, but without any witnesses or CCTV footage, he didn't have anything solid to go on.

Waiting until the reporters had made their way out of the conference room, Max soon followed in the direction that the King and Queen had gone in only moments before. He found them sitting in a small room, the King with his arm wrapped tightly around his wife's shoulders as her small body heaved with sobs. It didn't matter how rich you were, or what your title was. A parent was a parent.

"Your Majesty…" Max spoke softly, causing Fergus to look up "I'm Detective Maximus Guard. I'm heading up your daughters case."

Standing, Fergus made his way over to Max, shaking his hand firmly with both of his.

"Please tell me something." Fergus said, his eyes as big as saucers "Anything…Do you believe my daughter is safe."

"I believe your daughter has been abducted, Your Majesty." Max spoke, never breaking eye contact with the burly King.

At the word 'abducted', both the King and Queen gasped, Corrine's hand flying to her mouth as she began to cry once again.

"But…" Max carried on "I also believe that if she has been abducted, that she is alive. Someone of your daughter's status is too precious for anyone to just 'do away with'. This will be purely about money."

"Then what should we do!?" Corrine cried, getting up to join her husband and the white haired detective.

"Right now…" Max replied with a sigh "All we can do is wait."

…

10 o'clock soon came and Flynn was beginning to lose his patience. The number of cigarettes in his pocket dwindling with each passing minute. The thought of having to wait another couple of hours for his friends to wake up was not something that he was particularly looking forward to. Waiting had never been his strong point. Annoyed, he shut off the TV, hoisted himself out of his seat and began to climb the stairs, making sure that he thumped on each step just a little louder than necessary.

They hadn't moved much since the last time he checked in. Both were sprawled out on their beds, their bags and empty cans of beer littering the floor around them. The curtains were drawn, but the sun was still managing to break through the small holes that covered them. Lovely sight… Making his way through the room, Flynn open the curtains, the sun light immediately waking Scott and Mike out of their slumber.

"What the fuck!" Cried Scott as he sat up, shielding his eyes from the invading light "What the hell you doing Rider!?"

"Time to wake up boys." He replied, picking up a sports bag that lay in the corner of the room before rummaging through it.

"What time is it?" Mike asked quietly, scratching his head as he yawned.

"10" Flynn said without looking up from the bag.

"10am!" Scott exclaimed "Man that's still night in my book! I'm goin' back to sleep."

But Flynn didn't say anything. He continued to look through his bag, before giving a frustrated sigh. Throwing the bag back to the floor he headed over to the small desk that sat in the corner of the room and began to look through the drawers. Sitting up fully, Scott gave his friend a confused look.

"What the fuck are you looking for!?" He cried, shooting Flynn an impatient look.

"Camcorder" Flynn said "I don't know if you two have forgotten, but we have a young girl upstairs who is desperate to get home." Finding the camera in the drawer, Flynn turned to look at his burly friends, who by the looks of things were still half asleep and ready to kill him "Time to film this video and get it over with."
…

Rapunzel stood at the dirt spotted window staring out into the nothingness that was known as 'outside'. It was a beautiful day, a day where she would have loved to spend sitting outside basking in the sunlight. She could tell by the gentle sway of the few trees outside that there was a slight breeze and the sweet sound of birds singing brought her a little joy. Wherever it was that her captors had brought her, it was unlike any place she had seen before. For miles, all she could see was fields. Very unlike the streets of Washington DC where she was calling 'home' for the next couple of years. Just how far from the city was she?

Turning away from the window, Rapunzel couldn't help but look round the room that she was being held captive in. Dull, grey and cold. She couldn't understand how a place as beautiful as outside could be the back yard to such an awful place as this house.

It was the sound of footsteps that caused Rapunzel to snap out of her daze. Heavy footsteps. Them. Panicked, she climbed back on to the bed, scooting as far into the corner as she could before the door burst open.

Flynn could clearly see what Rapunzel meant when she said he was different from Scott and Mike. The way Scott had kicked the door open was just proof of that. He saw her jump as the two barged into the room, the fear in her big emerald eyes sickening. She tried to scurry even further into the corner as their faceless figures got closer, but was pulled into the middle of the bed when Scott grabbed her ankles and hauled her back. There was a cry of pain as his grip tightened around the tender area of her legs, Flynn wanting nothing more than to beat him into a bloody pulp. He had promised her they wouldn't hurt her.

"Hey!" He cried, storming further into the room "What the fuck are you doing?!"

"Shut up!" Barked Scott, letting her go briefly.

Again Rapunzel tried to scoot away, but Scott was just that little bit faster, grabbing her ankles once more and pulling her back into the middle of the bed. Sobbing, she began to thrash her legs about, the two brothers laughing. But with one swift movement she broke free, bringing a foot up and kicking Scott in the face. Crying out in pain, Scott's hands flew to his nose, blood seeping through the bandana that covered him.

"You bitch!" He cried before quickly backhanding her across the face.

Furious, Flynn grabbed him by the shirt, pushing him away and causing him to stumble over some boxes.

"What the fuck is wrong with you!" He cried before turning to help the crying Princess sit up "Don't you understand!? No touching her, no hurting her!"

Huffing, Scott got up and stalked over to the other side of the room, grabbing the camcorder as he and Mike began to set it up. Turning to look at Rapunzel, Flynn saw how scared she truly was...and to be honest...he was a little scared himself. He had never seen Scott act this way towards a woman before. Give someone a little ounce of power and they abuse it.

"You ok?" He whispered to her, his hand on her back as she nodded slightly "You sure?"

"Can we just get this over with?" She pleaded her voice small and timid as she tried to hold back the fear and tears that were threatening to fall once again.

Helping her up, Flynn walked her over to a chair that Mike had brought in. She looked so small. So fragile. Her wavy hair framing her tear stained face as she looked anywhere but towards the two brutes arguing over the camera. Tucking her hands inside the sleeves of the sweater, she wiped her eyes, Flynn crouching in front of her as her body gave an involuntary jerk.

"Rapunzel." He said quietly, causing her to look down towards him "I am so sorry. That was not ok…"

"RIDER!" Snapped Scott, clutching the camera in anger as he watched his friend's actions "Fucking stand up!"

Rider…A name...She finally had a name, or at least part of one. A simple slip up that had gone unnoticed had given her his name.

"You better do what he says." She whispered he eyes glassy as she placed a hand on his forearm "No point in the both of us getting hurt. I'm ok…honest."

Nodding, Flynn reluctantly got to his feet and headed over towards the two brothers, the anger boiling inside of him. It took everything in his power not to beat Scott black and blue. This was supposed to be simple! Film the video, drop it off and get the money. There was no violence.

"Quite finished?" Scott barked, closing a tape into the camera.

"Just give me the fucking camera." Flynn spat back.

Handing his friend the camera, Scott made his way over to Rapunzel, taking a post at her side as Mike stood beside Flynn holding flash cards up. Flynn felt his stomach lurch at the fear in her eyes as Scott placed a large hand on her shoulder to keep her down. It was as if his touch burned her. Like his very presence was about to make her sick. He watched as she bit her lip, turning her head away from him as she waited for filming to begin.

"You be a good girl now…" He snarled down at her.

Hitting the record button, Flynn gave a nod to Rapunzel, one that he swore she returned as she turned her attention towards the cards Mike was holding up.

"Mom…Daddy…" She began, fighting to keep her voice as calm as possible "Last night…I was taken as I walked home from a night out with friends…" She watched as Mike dropped the front card "I don't know where I am, but I want to come home…" Her voice began to crack as a tear rolled down her cheek "…I just want to come home…"

Flynn didn't know that it was possible to feel your heart break, until his began to shatter.

"…Please give them what they want…" She carried on "If you don't then they will…kill me!?"

She began to panic as she read the words, looking at Flynn then at Scott who pulled out a gun from the back of his jeans and held it to her head. She felt sick as she felt the cold metal against her skin, her life flashing before her eyes as she tried to remain as calm as possible. Flynn wanted nothing more than to stop everything and take her home, but Eugene's life depended on it. All he could do was give her a little nod to continue, and thankfully she did.

"Please…" She began once more "Just give them what they want…More instructions to follow."

Flynn cut the camera off, and stood up. Rapunzel whimpered a little as Scott pressed the barrel of the gun deeper into the side of her skull, and for a minute she actually thought that he was about to shoot her.

"Put the gun down!" Flynn cried.

Looking at his friend, Scott reluctantly lowered the gun and stalked out the room, snatching the camera out of his hand as he went. Mike slowly walked towards Flynn, brushing up against him before he leaned down into Rapunzel and whispered in her ear...

"You were lucky this time."

"Go send the fucking video!" Flynn shouted, pushing him out the door and slamming it shut.

At the sound of the brothers muttering and stomping downstairs, Rapunzel broke down, her body heaving as she sobbed into her arms. Her lip was bleeding from where she had been hit, her body shaking with fright as Flynn made his way over to her, once again kneeling in front of her. Gingerly, he put his hand out and touched her knee, a little sign to show her that he was there. She didn't wait two seconds before throwing her arms around his neck and crying into his chest, knocking him into a sitting position on the floor. Surprised at first Flynn didn't know what to do, but soon he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer into him as he rested his chin on top of her head.

"I'm so sorry…I'm so so sorry." He said, rubbing her back as she continued to cry "That wasn't supposed to happen. I didn't even know that he had a gun."

She didn't say anything. She just gripped the back of his hoodie tighter and pulled herself closer into his body. He was taken aback by her sudden gesture, but he wasn't going to move her. How could he? He had promised her that she would be safe. That they wouldn't hurt her.

"I'm sorry…" She finally mumbled, pulling back to look at him "I just got so…I thought I was about to die."

So did I…

Swallowing, Flynn tucked some or her hair behind her ear, gently cupping her cheek in his hand.

"Just remember what I said." He spoke softly "You will see Corona again."

Nodding, Rapunzel finally managed to take a deep breath, a wave of calmness beginning to overtake her. Why did she believe everything this guy was saying to her? Why did she trust him so much?

Sitting back a little, Rapunzel brushed some hair from her face, her fingers coming in contact with the cut on her lip causing her to wince a little. Her first bloody lip.

"Ahh!" She hissed, gently dabbing the tender area before wiping her hand onto the sweatpants "Great..."

Without thinking, Flynn reached up and gently pressed his thumb to her mouth, slowly swiping the blood away. He sat like that for what felt like forever, staring into her big emerald eyes as he absentmindedly traced the shape of her lower lip, his fingers looking so dirty compared to her porcelain skin.

"Thank you." Rapunzel finally spoke, breaking the silence.

"It's…it's nothing." He stuttered, his nerves coming through.

She couldn't help but stare at him, again, her own reflection bouncing back from his sunglasses. Oh how she wanted to take those glasses off. To look into the eyes of the man who had been nothing but kind to her the whole time. To look into the eyes of the man who made her stomach jump every time he was near. The man, who oddly enough, she wanted to call a 'friend'.

"Is it your first or last name?" She asked timidly, breaking both of them out of their daze.

"Is what my first or last name?" Flynn asked, a lump rising in his throat.

"Rider?"

Scott…He had called him 'Rider' in her presence. How could he have forgotten that?

"…It's…my last name." He finally spoke "And it was something that you weren't supposed to find out."

"Well…I promise I won't tell." She said with a small smirk, one arm still draped around his neck as they sat on the old dusty floor "Can I ask something else of you…"

"Sure." Flynn replied, smirking at her formality.

"…Can…can you take off your glasses?"

Flynn didn't know why, but for some reason he felt inclined to take them off. He knew that he shouldn't do it, but he also knew that he shouldn't have the girl sitting in his lap while he hugged her. But for some reason he couldn't seem to move her...For some reason he didn't want to. Reaching up he was about to take off the sunglasses, Rapunzel soon stopping him as she placed her small hand on top of his.

"Wait." She said "I want to do it."

Without argument, Flynn lowered his hand and watched as Rapunzel slowly reached out towards them. She seemed to be of two minds whether she was actually going to remove them or not, but pretty soon the dark tint that covered his vision was gone and for the first time since exchanging glances at the bar, their eyes met.

She remained silent, never looking away as she held the glasses in her hands. His eyes were amazing. Brown…Hazel to be exact, and filled with more compassion and concern than she had ever seen in her life. Compassion and concern for her. He wasn't putting on an act with her...He truly meant every word he said.

Although the bandanna still covered most of his face, Rapunzel didn't care. His eyes were enough, and all she could muster up was one simple little word.

"...Wow."

….

A/N: Soooo…what did you think? I hope you enjoyed it. I had fun writing it. Please review. They are such an encouragement. Thank you :-)