Chapter Three
"I'm okay MK, really."
When the Hardy's arrived back at the club that afternoon, they saw Ann sitting on a table with a blanket wrapped around her shoulders. Her hair was wet from rain, but other then that, she looked fine. Marley Kane sat near her and the rest of the girls were all chatting excitedly.
"You're sure? No broken bones or scrapes or anything?"
"I'll be fine, MK."
Frank approached the group with Joe in tow. The police weren't in sight. Frank figured they had gone back to the station.
"Frank. Joe." Sammy smiled as they approached.
But MK's eye narrowed as he spotted the brothers. "What are they doing here?"
"I called them."
Greg entered the room then. "Alright, the police and an ambulance are on their way!" His eyes brightened when he spotted the Hardys. "Gosh, you guys don't miss a beat do you?"
"Sammy called us." Frank said.
Joe walked over to where the girls sat with their manager. "Hey, you alright?" He said to Ann.
Ann looked worriedly at her friends.
"It's okay. He's a detective." Said Dawn with an encouraging smile.
"He's an amateur!" Snapped MK.
"Chill, MK, dude." Leslie said. "Give these guys a chance."
Joe took a chair and brought it over to the group's table. "Maybe someone could tell us what happened?"
"Sure. Where should we start?"
"How about from the beginning?" Frank suggested.
Sammy nodded. "Okay then. Well, not long after everyone left, Ann came limping out of the woods..."
"Woods?"
Ann nodded.
"Do you remember what happened in the woods?" Frank also grabbed a chair and sat beside his younger brother.
Ann nodded again.
"Would you mind telling us?"
Ann swallowed hard, "Where should I start?"
"How about from when the lights in the club went out?"
She nodded meekly, "Well…after the lights went out, somebody grabbed me…and… I tried to scream… b-but they gagged me. Charlie screamed and then they drug us out the back door and into the woods where there was a van waiting." She paused and took a deep breath. "Charlie and I were fighting with the guys but they were too strong for us."
"How did you get away?" Dawn asked her, eyes wide.
"Charlie hit the guy that had me. He let me go then. I ran as fast as I could and then I tripped. I ended up hiding in the bushes until they finally gave up the search and left. That's when I ran back here."
Frank nodded solemnly.
Joe said, "Can I ask you something else?"
"Um…"
"I think that's enough for now." MK interjected, placing a protective arm around Ann's shoulders. "Ann's obviously just been through a very traumatic experience."
"It's okay, MK. I want to help."
"But, Ann…"
Ann looked back to the brothers. "Please. Ask away."
Joe nodded, "Um…do you remember anything about the van they had? Like the color, or the make, or anything?"
"Well…" Ann thought for a moment, "It was white, with no windows on the back..." She paused and then shook her head. "I'm sorry. That's all I can remember."
"It's fine." Frank spoke up, then prodded gently. "Do you remember anything about the men who grabbed you?"
"They all had masks on..."
"Ski-masks?" Joe asked.
Ann nodded, "I think so… And they all wore dark clothing."
"How tall would you say they were?" Said Frank.
"I don't know. Tall?" She paused, "Well, taller than me, at least." She looked to the boys again. "Does that help you any?"
"Yeah. Anything you can tell us is helpful." Frank forced a smile at her and the rest of the band members.
"You didn't happen to see the license plate did you?" Joe said, tying to get more information.
"No. I didn't get a good look at it. Sorry." Ann looked down at her hands frowning.
"Hey, it's okay. Really." Joe said as he reached out and touched her arm. "What's important is that you're okay."
"What about Charlie?"
"We'll find her. I promise."
MK frowned at him. Suddenly, sirens filled the air as an ambulance and cop car pulled into the lot.
Spotting Chief Collig, Frank instantly looked to Greg. "We'd better split."
Greg nodded. "Well… okay."
"Stay safe." Joe smiled at Ann. "Sammy's got our number if you think of anything more."
Ann nodded weakly and MK glared at him.
"Joe! Come on!"
Frank and Joe skipped out the back just as the police entered with the paramedics. Frank looked to his younger brother. "Stay safe, huh?"
Joe frowned. "She just reminds me of Iola, that's all."
Frank's grin faded. Whenever that name came up, he tried to be understanding. It hadn't been all that long, after all, since the car bomb went off that killed Joe's girlfriend. Frank knew the hole in Joe's heart had still yet to totally heal since Iola's death.
They returned to the car in silence and then drove home. All the while Joe thought of Iola and that fateful day.
* * *
Charlie woke up later that night on a damp floor with one large bump on the head.
"Ouch." She reached to feel the injury the guys had given her when she had kicked the one holding onto Ann. She sat up and looked around. There were no windows and no door that she could see. "Where am I?" Just then, a part of the wall swung open to reveal a man standing in the doorway.
"You're awake." The man looked down at her.
"Y-yes. Who are you? What do you want?" She tried to back away from him as he came walking towards her.
"It's not what I want. Stand up!" He drew her into a corner and grabbed her wrist. "The boss wants to see you now that you're awake." He pulled her too her feet.
"No! I don't want to go. Let me go!" She yelled at him as he yanked her out the door and up some stairs.
"Stop yelling!" He snapped at her then turned into a large room with a desk and a man sitting in the chair behind it. He back was to her. What? Is he afraid to show me his face?
"Is she awake now? Or are you just wasting my time again?" The man asked the guy holding Charlie.
"No sir. Here she is." The first man threw Charlie at the desk.
"What do you want with me? Huh? Why go to all this trouble?" Charlie frowned at the back of his head. She had had just about enough of this pushing around.
"What I want is…" He started to say but then stopped suddenly.
"What? What do you want from me?"
"Oh, Charlie, Charlie, Charlie. Isn't it obvious?" He said calmly, "I want you back."