Kidnapped Ch.3
'You will tell us what is in it,' the man growled as he grabbed Kate by the shoulders and forced her upright into a sitting position.
'I have no idea what you are talking about,' Kate insisted as she tried to block out the pain searing through her right shoulder. She had been trapped here for three days, and after being asked the same question every day, she was getting really annoyed. She closed her eyes, bracing herself for another slap or shove from the man, but to her surprise, he merely chuckled.
'You still won't tell us? Then we'll get them to ask you to tell us,' the man sneered at her, as he tossed a stack of photos in her face. Kate's heart plummeted to her stomach. The subject in the photo was obviously not aware of these photos being taken, and her face had been circled with a red marker in every single photos. It was a thick stack, with at least twenty photos of the same girl – Alexis.
'Don't you dare touch my daughter,' Kate told them, her voice so low that it almost came out as a hiss.
'Then you know what to do. I'll leave you so you can consider the situation you are in, but if you refuse to answer again when I ask you tomorrow, you will never see your little girl again,' the man told her, smirking triumphantly as he realized that he finally had a hold over her.
The door slammed after him, and fear gripped Kate's heart tightly. She had come to love Alexis like her own daughter, and the thought of her being in danger was more than she could bear. Wracking her brains, she began to try to recall every encounter with a diary.
Castle and Esposito looked up as Ryan ran into the precinct as quickly as he could, with a brown file tucked under his arm. Ryan had gone to the crime lab in the hopes of putting more pressure on them to finish the analysis of any evidence taken from the scene where Kate was taken, while Castle and Esposito had been going over security footages looking for clues on the killer's identity.
'We've got something,' Ryan panted, and the other two men's heads shot up. 'What is it?' Castle asked anxiously. Esposito stared urgently at Ryan, willing him to give them good news.
'The red fragments on the ground? Turns out they are a type of bamboo. Usually, bamboos are green, and they are only painted red to be used as firecrackers,' Ryan told them.
'Bro, it's February. Chinese New Year is just over. These stuff can be found all over the place in Chinatown,' Esposito answered, his brows furrowing.
'Yes, but there's something special about these fragments. There is absolutely no sign of them ever having gone off,' Ryan answered. 'The only explanation that makes sense is that they came from a place where the firecrackers are made from scratch.'
'There can't be many places in Chinatown that does that,' Castle answered, a small spark of hope entering his eyes for the first time since Kate was kidnapped. 'Have you checked how many are there?'
'Already done that. And the best news? There is only one shop that does that,' Ryan told them, handing out a small slip of paper with the address written clearly on it.
'Captain Gates, how is the investigation for our own detective coming along?' Chief of Detective Michael Key asked as he tapped his fingers on the table impatiently.
'Sir, my detectives have found a lead. They believe that she is being held in a warehouse in Chinatown. They are on their way over now,' Victoria Gates answered.
'Are they absolutely sure? We do not want to tip off these kidnappers in any way at all,' Michael asked, his voice laced with concern.
'My detectives have found some fragments at the place where she was kidnapped. Turns out they came from the production of firecrackers, and there is only one shop in Chinatown that makes their own firecrackers,' Captain Gates answered.
'Good, good. Give me a call when you've got the detective back home safely,' Michael Key requested.
'Yes sir,' Captain Gates answered as she hung up, giving her detectives a signal to get going to the address on the slip of paper immediately.
'They're on to us. We've got to go now,' one of the men exclaimed as he quickly bounded Kate's hands behind her. 'And stay still,' he instructed as Kate began to struggle uselessly against her bindings, and left the room.
Kate's eyes widened slightly as she saw that her pregnancy test had fallen onto the ground in her attempts to escape. As she was dragged out of the room by another person, her eyes lingered on the small stick lying on the floor, and she sent a small prayer up to whoever may be listening, hoping against hope that her child was still safe within her.
Her heart fluttered as she heard murmurs of familiar voices somewhere far away. She knew that it was Ryan, Esposito, and most importantly, Castle. She opened her mouth to try to tell them where she was, but the person next to her was ready. A towel was quickly placed around her mouth, and before she could utter a single word, the chloroform had already done its job, and darkness seeped through her brain.
'Clear.'
'Clear.'
'It's all clear.'
After the members of SWAT team had confirmed that there was no one in the warehouse, Castle raced into the room. He walked around the house, looked into the rooms and came out, his face disappointed each time, until they reached the room at the end of the warehouse.
A small mattress and a small plate of food with some water sat in that room. Ryan, Esposito and Lanie all filed in behind Castle, looking into the room with an expression of apprehension. The room was in a ghastly condition. Walking over to an abandoned coffee cup that stood on the table right outside the room, she slowly placed her hand on it and shook her head.
'The coffee is still warm. We must have just missed them,' Lanie told them as they all groaned in frustration. All of a sudden, something white that stuck out from under the mattress caught Castle's eye. Walking over, he pulled out the stick and his mouth dropped open as he recognized the stick.
'Lanie,' he breathed, and she walked towards him. When she saw the positive sign on the stick, she knew that she could no longer hide this from him.
'Is she…' Castle started and Lanie nodded. She did not need him to finish his sentence to know what he was asking.
'When?' Castle asked, and Lanie shook her head.
'The day that she went missing,' she answered softly.
'That was what my present was,' Castle murmured sadly, and Lanie nodded.
'I only confirmed her suspicion that morning. She was so happy, Castle,' Lanie told him.
'I need her back, Lanie. I need them both to come back to me,' Castle pleaded, looking at every one of them. His voice started to break as he thought of his family in danger.
'We know, Castle. We'll get her back,' Esposito reassured him. 'She's a strong woman. She will come back, safe and sound.'
A/N: An update on Sunday evening? You've guessed it, camp tomorrow. So, here you go, chapter 3 of Kidnapped. Next week, you guys will not be so lucky, because I am taking a day camp instead of overnight camp, so I can still wait till Monday evening before updating. -insert evil laugh-
Anyway, please read and REVIEW! Typing a review will only take you a couple of minutes, and it will make my day, so I'm looking at you with puppy dog eyes and hoping you will review. You will, won't you? As usual, criticisms are much appreciated but no flamers please.
Dedicated to Bianca tabbycat and Project66 for betaing this story and giving me new ideas respectively.
Zoe tabbycat