"Jaden! Jaden, help me! Jaden!!!"
Jaden awoke in his chair, the whole night he had nightmares of Alexis locked up somewhere with someone doing God knows what to her.
"Jaden…"
He felt Yubel's hand on his shoulder.
"We're going to find her, I promise you."
By daybreak very little had changed. Mindy and Jasmine were still making a list of all the people they knew that had at one time or another had a crush on Alexis and Detective Sellers had been chasing down other leads.
"Harrington Rosewood perhaps?" asked Mindy.
"I seriously doubt it. He wasn't the kind of guy who would dress up like he's Iron Man or something."
"What about that Pierre person?"
"Not likely."
"Oh! I know!" said Hassleberry.
"Who?"
"That Bob Banter person Jaden dueled in his second year!"
"Him? Get serious." said Chazz. "Anyone who dresses up like a robot clearly has issues, we're looking for someone who's not right in the head."
"Not to mention someone rich or smart enough to either buy or build a working laser." said Blair.
"And that narrows the list of suspects down to… someone we don't know." said Syrus.
"Wait a minute, didn't Alexis say awhile ago she felt like she was being stalked?" asked Jasmine.
"Yeah, didn't she tell us that night at the Tropic Combo?"
"The what?" asked Jaden.
"It's a restaurant." said Chazz.
"Yeah, we were in the Mumbo room at the Tropic Combo, the band was playing Latin dance music, there was a big dumb guy playing drums, people were dancing under a pole when she whispered to us that this guy in a raincoat had been following her all day and that same person was in the restaurant, then when we looked up he was gone."
"Now let me get this straight." said Jaden "She muttered some mumbo jumbo during the combo somba in the mumbo at the Tropic Combo, then there was a jumbo dumbo playing the limbo on the bongos and then he was gone?"
"…I guess you could say that."
"What did he look like?"
"I don't know, we never saw his face."
"Well that's a boat load of help." said Chazz.
Suddenly a huge brick crashed through the window, Jaden and the others looked outside but no one was there.
"Wait, there's a note attached to it!" said Blair.
Jaden unwrapped the note.
"Somebody call Detective Sellers."
A few minutes later Detective Sellers arrived.
"You've received a note from the kidnapper."
"Yeah, and it's an unusual request. It says, Jaden, bring your cards and duel disk to the local dueling stadium at 10:00 pm. No cops, or Alexis dies."
"That's strange, why would someone kidnap Alexis, then challenge Jaden to a duel?" asked Syrus.
"Probably because he knows that Alexis' infatuation with Jaden started with her being impressed by his dueling skills." said Jasmine.
"I doesn't matter." said Blair "Jaden can't just go in there unprotected, who knows what could happen to him."
"Don't worry miss, that stadium is so gigantic, we're going to be able to hide a million cops in there. I thought these guys were smart, but their in way over their heads."
Later that night Detective Sellers gave Jaden a small thing that looked like a coin.
"What is this?"
"It's a GPS tracking device. It's accurate within two feet anywhere on the globe. In case the worst should happen we'll be able to know where you are."
"Thanks detective."
"Now we better get going, the kidnapper said 10:00 pm sharp."
"I still don't see why it's so important that I come." said Chazz.
"Simple, if you aren't with us when the kidnapper shows up, then you did it." joked Atticus.
Jaden drove alone in his Saleen S7. He had brought his cards and duel disk with him just as the kidnapper instructed.
"Hold on Lex, I'm coming."
He remembered what Alexis had told him before he fought the Card Master, she had confessed her feelings for him, she called him her hero. Suddenly his cell phone started to ring, it didn't say who was calling.
"Hello?"
"This is the kidnapper." said a metallic voice.
"How'd you get my number?!"
"Are you kidding? It's the first number on her phone."
"Where is she!?! What have you done with her!?!"
"Keep your pants on. I haven't done anything to her… Yet. Now the reason I've called is because we need to change the plan. Don't go to the dueling stadium."
"But I've got to go to the stadium!"
"You don't have to do anything until I tell you to you Slifer red slacker."
The kidnapper called Jaden a Slifer red slacker, it must've been someone who knew him from Duel Academy
"Now listen, you meet me at mid-town park."
"But that place isn't safe after dark."
"Put a cork in it you lazy red bastard! I'll see you there in ten minutes."
"Geesh, this guy really doesn't like me." thought Jaden.
At the next stop light he dialed another number.
"Quick! Get me the police!"
"I'm still here!"
"Yikes!"
"Try anymore games like that and I'll put a bullet right through Alexis' head."
The line went dead.
"Jaden, you can't go in there alone." said Yubel.
"I won't be alone, I have you with me. Besides, I've still got that tracking dot on me. Since I'm not heading for the stadium Detective Sellers and the others will probably follow me there."
Jaden drove to the park. He knew this place wasn't safe at this time of night, so he set his car alarm, he had paid an arm and a leg for it and he didn't want anyone to make off with it. He entered the park and it was extremely dark. It made him feel like he was in a horror movie waiting for the guy with a chainsaw and hockey mask to spring out at him
"There's no one here?"
"Jaden! Look out!"
Yubel's warning came too late. Jaden turned around and saw the person in the robot suit looking him right in the eye.
"Hello chum…"
He raised his hand and a stream of gas came out of it. Jaden started to cough and fell to the ground. The last thing he remembered was the sound of approaching police sirens, then his life went black.
(To be continued)
The thrills ain't stopping here ladies and gents
Who is this mysterious kidnapper?
What will become of Jaden?
Will I be stuck writing stories like this for no profit for the rest of my life?
If you want to find out the answer to some of these questions stay tuned for
Chapter 4: When nerds go nuts!