In Hot Water

Chapter Four: "Shenanigans"

Saturday May 21st, 1966

Shane came by for the second time that day around noon. He said the person who was suppose to be here had somewhere to go and couldn't make the shift to babysit him. Pony wasn't sure if that was good or bad. He didn't know this person and wasn't itching to meet a friend of Shane's. The thought sent shivers down Pony's spine. What Ponyboy was worried about is what the person was doing that caused him to miss his shift.

It was a few hours later when Pony heard shuffling upstairs. Someone was here, and it was probably Shane's friend, but the footsteps were different. He wasn't wearing regular shoes, he was wearing heels. Pony assumed that Shane would get a guy to help him out in this job, but the sound of heels clicking against the floors above him gave it away.

It took whoever was upstairs fifteen minutes to make it into the basement where Pony was tied up in. He could smell warm food which was the opposite to what Shane had brought him mixed with the familiar scent of perfume. Did he know this person? Pony tried to turn his head around towards the stairs as the person walked down them but his neck wouldn't allow it.

"I assume you know the rules Ponyboy," a female voice said. He knew that voice but he couldn't pinpoint it. She walked passed him, not showing her face as she put a plate down with a glass with a dark liquid in it, along with a towel. The liquid looked like pop, but he wasn't sure. Still not facing him, she bent over and pulled out a small handgun from her heeled boot. "No funny business."

She turned around and brushed her sandy blond hair out of her face and Pony's jaw dropped. She looked slightly different wearing Soc clothes instead of greaser clothes, but there was no mistake of who this girl was. "Shannon?"

Her face turned red. "Don't call me that, got that? My name is Sharon, NOT Shannon." She spat out the name in disgust. It was clear she didn't like that name, but why she was going by it confused Ponyboy.

"I'm sorry, Sharon."

"Thank you." Sharon walked over to Ponyboy and untied his hands. "Do you want to eat first or take a shower? Food's warm, but if you prefer cold you can wait."

"I think I'll eat first."

Ponyboy stood up, and walked toward the table. There was a chair but he preferred to stand even though his legs were numb from sitting practically all day. Sharon took a seat in her chair and watched Pony devour the food.

"I usually will come by around noonish, I just had to do a few things so that's why you got Shane. Once you are done eating, you can use the bathroom and shower and such, then I want you to get some exercise. Run around, walk around, do push ups, I don't really care, but you can't sit around twenty-three hours a week."

Pony stopped eating. "Why are you being nice about this? Why is Shane being nice about this?"

Sharon smirked. "We're not being nice about this Ponyboy. We need you alive for now. You will eventually be dead. We have to keep you fed and exercised to keep you alive."

Pony took a sip of his drink. Pepsi, she sure seems nice to me. He thought as he placed his favorite drink on the table.

"So Sharon, could I ask you something? I wanna know why you switched your name to Shannon when dating my brother."

"Soda told me you were smart, so I thought when you saw my face you'd figure it out. Shane's my cousin. My brother's the guy he went to stay with after he shot you. But since my brother's a boy, and the police are currently interrogating him right as we speak, he wasn't the right accomplice. Think about it Ponyboy. If your brother was home last night than Shane would never been able to get you alone before anyone noticed he was gone."

Ponyboy pushed his food away from him. "I'm going to go take my shower now."

Pony headed towards the bathroom, and Sharon threw the towel she brought down at him as he walked away. He caught it without bothering to look at her. He knew this girl would end up breaking his brother's heart, and he should've said something. If he said something then this might have never happened.

oOoOo

Sharon made Pony run around the room a couple of times before tying him back up to the pole. Pony noticed how much looser she had tied the ropes compared to her cousin. Sharon then went over, grabbed the wet towel, and unfinished food and drink.

"I wish I could keep you company a little longer, but I'm gonna go track down your brother, see how he's holding up. I'll tell ya how he's doin' tomorrow when I come to visit ya. I don't know, maybe I'll bring a book or something for you to read and let you do that for a little bit. Good night Ponyboy."

Sharon walked up the stairs. Pony heard her shuffling things around for about fifteen minutes before he heard a door close. Pony figured she was probably cleaning up the food she had made him. He waited a few more minutes and then started to untie the knot. He had to get out of there.

The basement door was locked though. Pony ran down the stairs and looked around. There had to be something that he could use to get out. He spotted a fork that Sharon had left on the table. He grabbed it and ran back up the basement stairs. He inserted the fork in the crack between the door and the doorframe. After a few seconds, he opened the door and ran out.

There were no lights on upstairs, but Pony could still see in the dark. He headed towards the front door with the fork still in his hand when he spotted a phone. He ran to it instead and dialed a number.

He listened to it ring a couple of times and he felt like his heart was going to beat out of his chest. Goddamnit Darry, pick up! Pick up! Pick up! PICK UP!

"Hello?" Ponyboy's heart stopped for a second when he heard his oldest brother speak over the phone. Could this really be happening?

"Hello?" Darry's voice asked again, and Pony snapped out of what was going through his head.

"Darry!" he cried. "It's me! It's Ponyboy!"

"Ponyboy, where are you? Are you okay?" Darry sounded frantic and worried over the phone.

"I-I don't know. I-I'm in a house in the woods. I-I'm okay Dar-"

Pony froze. He heard footsteps from outside. This couldn't be good.

"Ponyboy?" Darry's voice rang through the receiver sounding even more frantic, but Pony didn't reply. He dropped the phone on it's cradle and headed towards the nearest window. He opened it, jumped out of it quickly, and then shut it before dunking down into the bush that was underneath it at the exact moment Sharon walked through the door.

His heart pounded even harder than it did when he was on the phone with Darry. Sharon had a gun, and all Pony had as a weapon was a used fork. He had been shot once already and he did not want to relive that near death experience, not that he ever wanted to live through it the first time.

"PONYBOY!" Sharon's voice yelled from inside the house and Pony's heart beated faster. He thought it's sound would give away his location outside. He put his left hand over his mouth to help prevent any sound coming out of it, while his right hand clenched the fork ready to use if he had to.

"Don't hide from me Ponyboy. I promise if you come out now Shane won't hear a thing about this. I know you're around here somewhere. Please come out!"

Pony gulped trying to swallow a cry. He was so scared. The hand that held the fork wouldn't stop trembling. If she found him he could be killed. Johnny told him sixteen years wasn't a long enough life. If sixteen years was short, fourteen years was a lot shorter. When Pony saw Dally after he was shot, Dally told him that he had a choice; to live or die. He told Pony that he had a long life to live so Pony choose to stay with his brothers over his parents and two friends. Pony never regretted that choice until now that he was sitting in a bush trying his best to stay quiet but it's hard to not cry when you are so scared.

"Please Ponyboy!" she begged from inside of the house. He heard her sigh. She was quiet for a few moments before he heard her again.

"Shane… I'm sorry… I thought… It's not my fault but Pony escaped… I think he's around here somewhere… I SAID IT'S NOT MY FAULT!... Please Shane, I'm sorry… I'm so so sorry! I didn't… I'm sorry."

He heard her hang up the phone as he leaned back against the house. This was going to be a long, terrifying night. Pony could only hope that tonight he wasn't going to be found, but his hiding spot wasn't the best and if he moved Sharon might see or hear.

oOoOo

"Ponyboy, where are you? Are you okay?" Darry blurted into the phone as he watched Soda hop to his feet and rush over to him.

"I-I don't know. I-I'm in a house in the woods. I-I'm okay Dar-"

Pony went silent for a minute and the color in Darry's face drained. "Ponyboy?" he said frantically into the phone and Soda gave him a worried look. After a couple more seconds the line went dead.

"Darry!" Soda couldn't help be scream. His missing baby brother just called but the line went dead. Soda knew that couldn't be good.

Darry shook his head at Soda while he spun his finger in the rotary dial. "Detective Rodgers, I apologize for calling so late but Ponyboy just called…Yeah he said he's okay but he hung up on me before he was finished talking… He didn't say much but said something about a house in the woods, I don't know… Thank you. Goodbye."

Darry hung up the phone and Soda gave him a look. "Well?"

"You can only trace a call when it's still going but it's a lead. Pony's alive and we got an idea to where he is."

"But he hung up on us Darry! That isn't something that happens when something good is going on! He could be hurt or worse, dead now!"

"I know that Sodapop!" Darry snapped at his little brother. He pinched the bridge of his nose. "Sorry. I didn't mean to yell at you."

Soda ignored it. "You said the woods right?"

Darry nodded. "Yeah. He's in some house in the woods."

Soda left the living room for a few minutes and returned holding two flashlights. He tossed one to Darry who barely caught it from not expecting Soda to throw one at him.

"Let's get going." Soda headed out the front door with Darry's keys in his hands and Darry didn't hesitate to follow him. They wanted their brother back and they were willing to do anything to have him back in their arms.

Unfortunately for them, there were a lot possible places for Pony to be in Tulsa, but theu choose the nearest woods to their house figuring it would be the easiest for Shane to take an unconscious Ponyboy. They searched for two hours until the batteries in the flashlights were about to go dead and came up clean. Getting Ponyboy back wasn't going to be as easy as last time.

oOoOo

Frantic Call From Kidnap Victim

By Linda James

TULSA- Fourteen year old Ponyboy Curtis went missing late Friday night after criminal Shane Whitfield escaped from jail. Whitfield was arrested after murdering a kid his age, then kidnapping and nearly murdering Ponyboy Curtis. Nearly twenty-four hours after Curtis went missing, his oldest brother, Darrel Curtis received a frantic phone call from him. The brother said Ponyboy sounded very scared and hung up the phone before finishing a sentence. After the call last night, the police are looking into the new lead and are hoping to find the missing teenager and the escaped convict before it's too late.

What did I tell you? I thought this was pretty exciting. It was a really fun chapter to write! I wonder if Pony's going to escape or not? What do you guys think? I already know the answer but I was just wondering if you guys think Pony can make a run for it without being caught or if Shane and Sharon will find him. Questions questions questions!

Thanks for the reviews as always. I really appreciate it when you guys take the time to read my work. It's nice to know there are some people out there who enjoy it. I don't know, maybe one day I'll become a published writer... I don't know, but I"m never going to stop writing. I love it too much! Don't forget to review!

Also spring sports starts Monday, and I am on the swim team, so that is going to take some time off my hands, I'll try to update at least once a week. Also believe it or not, you can use a fork to pick a lock. I looked it up and even watched a video on how to do it. It's amazing what you learn when you are researching things for a story!

-Michelle Loves Chocolate 99