AN: Thank you for the reviews, as ever!
White Ford Transit
Just as Alex thought she was going to pass out from not enough air, he removed his hand from her mouth.
"Don't make a sound," he warned, and thrust his hand down the front of her dress. When he withdrew it, Alex saw he had her warrant card.
"Detective Inspector Alexandra Drake," he sneered. "What are you, undercover?"
He put the warrant card into his own pocket, making Alex feel oddly naked without it. He pressed the gun into her head. "Walk."
Alex walked forward, knowing that she should be talking, getting him to spare her life, but for the first time, no words were coming. She was speechless with fear.
She was lead from the stairwell through a door into a car park. Some men were standing by a white Ford Transit. They opened the door.
"Get in," they snarled, and Alex started to obey before the assistant barked, "Wait!"
He took a blindfold from the back of the van and tied it around her eyes. He gagged her and tied a rope around her wrist and ankles and pushed her into the back of the van, locking the doors.
Alex waited in there for what seemed like hours. She tried to undo the ropes around her, but the knots were tied too well. But the others were coming, weren't they? Gene would save her, surely?
Somebody did come and open the van doors and climbed in. Someone else slammed the doors shut again and locked it. She heard others climb into the front and she felt the vehicle move.
Gene? Where are you?
Disappointingly, no one that remained after the auction had bought a daffodil painting. As for the mingling, Gene was happily prepared to throttle every fake, rich, snobby, arty-farty twat in the room.
An hour later, he wanted to go home, as did the others. The party was wrapping up anyway. He sent Shaz into the Ladies to get Alex, but she wasn't there.
On his third circle of the room, he began to get worried. They couldn't be missing each other all the time, surely? How could he miss her in that dress anyway? Where had she got to?
"Maybe she's gone outside for a smoke," Gene said to the others as he pushed passed them. Dexter had banned smoking inside. He felt it damaged his paintings or the Feng Shui of the room or something.
"She doesn't smoke, Guv," Shaz pointed out.
"I know she doesn't smoke!" Gene snapped. He burst out onto the street.
"Bolly! Bolly!"
She wasn't there. People were starting to leave and he scanned their faces desperately, looking for her. She wasn't there. She wasn't anywhere. Gene turned round to go back inside. Just before he went in, a white transit van passed behind him.
He didn't notice.
AN: For the next few chapters, I'll be switching between what happens to Alex and what's happening to Gene, but in doing so I switch between Friday to Monday, then the previous Sunday… so yeah, it may get a little confusing.
I've tried to make it as clear as possible what day it is, but if it's still not clear (because what happens may be clear to me as the writer but I know isn't always presented clearly), then let me know and I'll look at the chapters again or add more author notes or something.
Anyway, I hope you're still enjoying the fic!