A pure nightmare!

Everyone was shocked. They couldn't believe what Ridge had just said.

"Now calm down!" soothed Felicia, her brother. "What happened?"

"That was Taylor...I didn't understand everything...she was completely outraged. All she kept saying was, Brooke took Jack."

"Oh my God, that can't be true, what a nightmare!" Stephanie voiced what everyone was thinking.

"Come on, we have to get to Taylor right now!" Eric reached for the phone. "I'll just call Lt. Baker." A short time later, they were all in their cars and drove as fast as they could to the Bel Air mansion. Felicia took Ridge with her because he was absolutely unable to drive. When they arrived in front of the house, they already saw police cars everywhere. Ridge, followed by the others, rushed into the house. Several police officers were running all around, securing evidence. One policewoman was tending Taylor, who was sitting on the couch, completely devastated and didn't stop crying. Ridge ran up to her.

"Taylor, what in God's sake happened?" He noticed she had a huge laceration on her head. It took a while for her to calm down, so she was able to describe what had happened.

"Brooke was here. I didn't even let her in, she talked about how sorry she was about everything and that she was ready to get professional help. She asked me for a list of possible therapists and when I went back in the house I felt a knock on my head. When I woke up again I was on the floor and there was no sign of Brooke. After I was able to get up, I went to the nursery and Jack was gone!" Taylor lost her composure and started crying again. The policewoman explained the situation further.

"It looks like Miss Logan took the boy and left the house with him. Presumably she is now on the run with him." Everyone was stunned, none of them would have believed Brooke would go so far. Ridge immediately reached for his cell phone and dialed Brooke's number, but her cell phone was dead. A short time later, Lt. Baker arrived. They told him about the kidnapping and the circumstances that had led up to it. Taylor and Ridge told him the whole story, including the incident with the CPS and that Brooke had poured alcohol into Taylor's glass.

"So you have to assume she's willing to do anything to keep the child for herself." he concluded. "That means, we can't rule out the possibility that she's mentally disordered either. So we have to work very carefully, so as not to endanger the child." He asked if they had any idea where Brooke might be hiding. They named him all the places they could think of that were familiar to Brooke. Lt. Baker immediately called out an international manhunt because Brooke had relatives and acquaintances abroad and she might be trying to abscond. Stephanie called Thomas and the girls and told them as gently as possible what had occurred. Felicia called Bridget to ask her if she knew anything about her mother. Bridget was willing to come as soon as she heard about the kidnapping. By the time Thomas, the twins and Bridget arrived, Lt. Baker and the other police officers had left. Everyone was running around, confused. No one quite knew what to say or do. They let Felicia and Thorne tell them what had happened. All of a sudden Phoebe screamed out.

"Oh my God Mom!" Taylor, who had been standing by the window, had suddenly collapsed. Unconscious, she was now lying on the floor. Everyone immediately rushed to her.

"Mom, what's wrong with you? Bridget, what's wrong with her?" Bridget knelt down to Taylor and examined her.

"Probably a breakdown, the stress was too much for her. Quick Thomas, run to my car and get my bag!" Bridget tried everything to bring Taylor back. But she didn't respond. Thomas brought her bag to her. She prepared an injection. Shortly after, Taylor regained consciousness and woke up. Bridget and Stephanie supported her and helped her into her bedroom. Visibly fragile, she was lying on the bed.

"Let me get you a glass of water." Bridget hurried away. Stephanie reached for Taylor's hand.

"You have to be strong now! Do you hear me..for Jack!" Taylor had another crying fit. "Everything's going to be okay! You'll see! We're all here for you, we'll all get through this together!" Taylor smiled gratefully at Stephanie. The relationship between the two women had been rather difficult and strained over the past years. But at that moment, Taylor was just glad Stephanie was there for her.

The next day, there was still no sign from Brooke and Jack. The situation at the Bel Air mansion was very tense. Everyone had had a sleepless night. The family had gathered again and discussed what to do. Taylor was lying in her bedroom. She still had not recovered from her collapse. She was miserable, especially since she could hardly eat or sleep because of her worries about Jack.

"After all, shouldn't we inform the public and the press, that would certainly increase our chances of finding Jack?" suggested Thomas.

"No!" said Stephanie firmly. "You heard what Lt. Baker said. None of us can assess what kind of mental state Brooke is in. If we increase the pressure on her, she could panic and that could be very dangerous for Jack. Or due to the public search, she could even be more careful and then it will be even harder to find her. If we lull her into a false sense of security, then she's most likely to make a mistake."

"That means there's nothing we can do but sit here and kick one's heels?" retorted Thomas angrily. Phoebe began to cry.

"I can't stand this anymore! Poor Jack, he must be terrified, all alone with that crazy woman!" Felicia took her in her arms and comforted her niece.

"Jack is so small I'm sure he doesn't even realize he's been kidnapped. We can only hope he's okay and that Brooke is taking good care of him. After all, she knows how to handle babies and she loves Jack. She is not going to hurt him! She kidnapped him to have him with her, she'll take good care of him. For Jack, maybe this whole thing is just some kind of vacation."

"Vacation?!" Steffy jumped up angrily. "It almost sounds like you think it's totally okay for Brooke to just grab our little brother and take off!"

"No, of course not! I didn't mean it that way. Of course it's horrible what Brooke did and we should do everything we can to get Jack back as soon as possible."

"Especially because of Mum and Dad! They can't take much more of this!"

The door opened and Eric and Ridge came into the house. Everyone looked at them expectantly, but the two just shook their heads sadly in resignation. They had met with Donna and Katie in hopes that the two could help them.

"Have you any news?" asked Thorne excitedly.

"Not really..." said Eric, sinking exhausted onto the couch. "Katie and Donna were thunderstruck, they had no idea what was going on with Brooke. Katie hasn't heard from Brooke in several days. However, Brooke had been at Donna's yesterday morning with an overnight bag for Hope. She asked Donna to pick Hope up from school and take her to her place because she had a date. Donna, of course, didn't suspect anything wrong. The two of them have been trying to reach Brooke the whole time, but she's not answering her phone. Her cell phone is still off."

"What? Brooke left Hope with Donna and went off with Jack alone?" Stephanie and everyone else were stunned. They couldn't comprehend that Brooke had abandoned her own daughter just to be with Jack. Ridge continued.

"Anyway, they now want to contact all relatives and friends to see if anyone has heard from Brooke. Although to be honest, I don't think she's been hiding out at someone's. The risk would be far too high that the one would call the cops on her."

"We also stopped by the police department. They believe Brooke is still in the country. She didn't show up on any passenger lists and they couldn't find a reservation for any tickets. They turned Brooke's entire house upside down, but nowhere a clue. The only thing they investigated is Brooke seems to have planned the kidnapping for quite some time. A few days ago she was in a wholesale market and bought all kinds of baby stuff. Lt. Baker suspects she already had the plan to kidnap Jack if the CPS plan wouldn't work out."

"What are they planning to do now?"

"They're trying to track her down by her car, possibly via surveillance cameras. They're hoping to trace her route."

"How's Taylor?" wanted Ridge to know.

"Not so good! Bridget is upstairs right now taking care of her."

"I'll go and check on her." Taylor lay in bed, apathetic and sobbing. Bridget tried everything to calm her down, but it seemed she wasn't getting through to Taylor at all. She spotted Ridge and came over to him. They whispered with each other.

"How is she?"

"She's a mess, she's barely eaten all day, I just tried to talk her into taking a sleeping pill. She really needs to get some rest, but no matter what I say, she won't listen."

Ridge took the pill from Bridget's hand.

"I'll try it."

"Okay, if you need anything, I'll be downstairs."

Ridge sat down on the bed with Taylor. He reached for her hand. Taylor was still staring off into space, completely absentminded.

"Doc!" She still didn't respond. "Taylor, please! You need to rest, you need your sleep!" Gruffly, she yanked her hand away.

"I don't need anything! The only thing I need is Jack!" She cried harder. "My little boy! I want him back and nothing else!" Ridge took her in his arms.

"I know! I know exactly how you feel, I feel the same way. But you'll see, Jack will be back with us soon. And when he's back, he'll need us. But most of all, he's gonna need his mommy. That's why you should be very careful with your energy, it won't help Jack at all if you risk your health. Come on, take the pill and try to sleep. Do it for Jack!" In fact Taylor now obeyed him, she took the sleeping pill and let him tuck her in.

He was about to get up and leave the room when Taylor grabbed his hand.

"Ridge, wait!" She looked at him pleadingly. "Please don't go! I don't want to be alone right now! Please!"

Later Bridget came to check on them, despite the tragedy she couldn't help grinning. Taylor and Ridge were nestled close together on the bed, both fast asleep. He held her tightly in both arms, she had her head against his shoulder. Bridget went back downstairs.

"They're both asleep! Thank God."

"We really need to figure out the best way to support them." Bridget agreed with Felicia. She already had an idea.

"I think they shouldn't be alone right now. There should always be someone with them day and night. The best thing will be for us to take turns so everyone can get some rest." Everyone agreed to her suggestion.

The kidnapping brought Taylor and Ridge closer together. Each tried to comfort the other one as best they could. Two days later, Taylor found Ridge in the nursery, completely distraught. Immediately, she rushed to him.

"It's all my fault! It's all my fault that Jack isn't with us now!"

"No Ridge, that's not true! If anyone is to blame it's Brooke! She alone is responsible for all this."

"But I started it. I set her up with Jack every chance I got. I even left him alone with her! Not even when you voiced your concerns I listened. I just wanted to get my way again and didn't think of the consequences!"

"Ridge, you couldn't have known Brooke would go this far. No one thought she would! Besides, you didn't know what was really going on inside Brooke."

"That's exactly my point! I spent so much time with Brooke and Jack, and I didn't realize what was going on with her."

"Ridge, don't blame yourself! Listen to me! It's not your fault! I should have just told you about Brooke's real intentions a lot sooner. Actually, it's my fault! I should have fought against her schemes with more force and resolution, right from the beginning. I shouldn't have spent all my time just thinking about the most reasonable way, I should have done everything to keep Brooke away from Jack!"

"No Taylor! You didn't put Jack in this danger, you did everything you could to protect him permanently."

"Yeah, and where has that gotten us? That he is now at the mercy of that fury! I should have just slammed the door in her face! Why did I fall for her lies again? I should have known better!"

"Oh come on, that could have happened to any of us. You couldn't assume she would beat you up. Besides, Brooke wouldn't have given up on her plan. She would have gone through with it no matter what, and if not that day, then at the next best opportunity." Taylor walked over to Jack's crib.

"She didn't even take his 'doggie' and 'quakie' with him. He can't fall asleep without them. The little stuffed dog Taylor had given Jack for his birth and Ridge's rubber duck had to lie in the crip with him whenever Jack slept. Taylor stroked the stuffed dog. Tears welled up in her eyes again.

"If Brooke harmed him in any way, I swear to you I'll kill her!" Ridge jumped up and wrapped Taylor in her arms.

"Don't even think about that! Jack is fine and he'll be back with us soon! Trust me!"

By now, it had been a week since the kidnapping and everyone was sheer mad with fear and worry. Although the police were trying their very best in their investigation, there was not the slightest trace of Brooke and Jack. Over the past few days, Eric and Ridge had called all of Brooke's friends, relatives, and other contacts, supported by Katie and Donna, hoping someone could tell them something about Brooke's whereabouts. But all of them had assured them they didn't know anything. Brooke hadn't shown up anywhere else and her credit card and phone remained unused, so she couldn't be located through them either. For Taylor and Ridge, the situation was becoming more unbearable with each passing day; both had reached the end of their rope. As best they could, they tried to pull themselves together, clinging to the hope that they would soon be able to hold Jack in their arms again. The entire family, except for Ridge and Taylor, gathered in the living room. Taylor had retreated to her bedroom, wanting to be alone. Ridge had gone for a walk to get some fresh air and also didn't want anyone to accompany him.

"By the way, I finally reached Kristen. She wanted to get on the plane and come here right away, but I talked her out of it. She can't do anything here. But I promised to keep her informed," Felicia told them.

"How's Ally doing?" asked Stephanie her son.

"Good, I just took her to Donna and Hope. Donna thought it would be a good idea to distract Hope a bit. She's still asking about her mother every day and Donna is starting to run out of answers. Besides, it's a good thing for me too. Ally keeps asking about Jack and when she can finally visit him again. I told her Jack is sick and she can't see him because she'd catch it."

"That's good, she shouldn't be aware of this situation. She's still way too young to handle this." Thomas jumped up and punched the wall.

"I could kill Brooke. That woman really has no heart or conscience! She's just disgusting, I mean, you have to imagine; abandoning her own daughter and running off with our brother. Just because she has this sick idea in her head, Jack should be her child. I could strangle her with my own hands!"

"Thomas, please get a hold of yourself. I can understand your anger towards Brooke, but we all have to try to stay calm now. This anger is going nowhere. I'm sure that despite all of this, Jack is fine and Brooke is taking good care of him and eventually she'll come back with him."

"Why are you still defending this woman?" snapped Steffy angrily at her grandfather. "I don't believe it! Brooke kidnaps our brother and you're still sticking up for her?! You'd probably still sympathize with her if she kills Jack? What does this woman have to do to our family before you finally realize she's a crazy psychopath?!"

"Steffy please! I am in no way defending what Brooke did! But I'm sure there's a good reason for her behavior and besides, she's still part of this family!"

"Brooke is not part of our family. She never was and she never will be! The only thing I want from this woman is for her to bring Jack back so Mum and Dad don't have to suffer any longer!" Steffy broke down crying, Phoebe and Thomas rushed to comfort her sister. Thomas stared venomously at his grandfather.

"Steffy is quite right. It's a shame that you are still on her side. I hope they catch her soon and then she can burn in hell or rot in some prison!"

Eric was about to admonish his grandson again when Stephanie intervened.

"Stop it! The situation is bad enough even without being on each other's throats. We are a family and we need to stick together! Come on Eric, let's get some fresh air for a moment." She led him outside to the patio.

"I don't understand you Eric, your obvious sympathy for Brooke should really have its limits now and you have to concede to Thomas and the girls that they are angry and desperate. Their hatred for Brooke in this situation is completely understandable. They are afraid for their little brother, whom they love idolatrously, and on top of that, they have to watch their parents suffer more and more every day. You should support them and not criticize them. Just because you still stand by that bitch!"

"Please, Stephanie! I'm not sticking up for Brooke, I know she made a big mistake. But don't you see what's happening here? Our entire family is going to fall apart if we don't do something about it now!"

"Eric, you have to accept, this family has already broken apart because of this act. Brooke has clearly crossed a line this time and even if she shows up here with Jack someday, things will never be the same. You have to finally give up this illusion of one big happy family where everyone always gets along and likes each other! You can't force it, especially not after everything that has happened. And you should really think about which side you are on. Because otherwise you might lose your family, especially your son and your grandchildren!" She left him to himself and went back inside. Eric remained thoughtful, fully aware that Stephanie was right with everything she said. But the thought that the family was destroyed forever broke his heart. All his life he had wanted nothing more than peace in the family and now there was a rift that couldn't be fixed. Taylor and Ridge would, as soon as they have Jack back, make sure that Brooke never will get close to him or them again and certainly they would not be able to forgive the kidnapping for a long time. Thomas, Steffy and Phoebe's hatred for Brooke would be even greater from now on. They had never been very fond of her anyway, and now they had all the more reason to despise her. It wasn't that he couldn't understand his grandchildren. He was just as angry with Brooke as then and he was very worried about his youngest grandson. But still, he was equally convinced that Brooke had not acted out of pure evil, but was probably very distressed and needed help. He sighed. Why this horrible tragedy? Why couldn't they all just be one big happy family?

It had now been two weeks since Jack's abduction. The situation was becoming more and more unbearable for everyone and they were all at their limit. Still, the whole family was taking turns in day and night shifts, so there was always someone in the house with Ridge and Taylor. The two isolated themselves from the family more and more. Taylor often sat apathetically in the nursery or in her bedroom for hours, unresponsive to anyone or she preoccupied herself with some meaningless activity. Ridge wasn't much better, either. He also spent a lot of time in Jack's nursery or went away for a walk. The guilt was still nagging at him. Both barely ate anything and could only sleep with medication. Everytime they woke up with terrible nightmares. The rest of the family suffered from their helplessness. Especially for Thomas and the twins, the situation was unbearable to witness the suffering of their parents. In addition they were very worried about their little brother. They loved Jack more than anything and could not bear the thought that something might happen to him or that they might not see him again. It wasn't easy for Katie and Donna either. There was still no sign of Brooke and Jack, and as many times as they tried to contact their sister, Brooke had not responded to any of their attempts or contacted them. For Donna it became more and more difficult to keep Hope in a good mood and to answer the questions about her mother. Thorne regularly brought Ally over to play. This kept Hope distracted and Ally busy. The two sisters were very worried about the future. Even if Brooke was found, it was rather doubtful that she would be able to take care of Hope. Katie tried to help in her own way and worked even harder than before. She did everything she could to keep the kidnapping out of the press and to negotiate with the journalists to keep their feet still. So far, not a word had leaked out to the public and that was for the best. Lt. Baker continued to think it was far too risky to make the story public, and a press turmoil was the last thing Taylor and Ridge needed right now.

Taylor and Ridge once again sat together in Jack's nursery. No one spoke a word. Many times in the past few days they had sat together in silence. The kidnapping had clearly brought them closer together. Each felt they were only truly understood by the other. They knew what was going on in the other's mind, even without a word.

Ridge played with Jack's little softball. He remembered the day he had brought it to him. It had been a few days before the kidnapping. Jack had been sitting in the living room playing with his toy animals. Ridge tried to direct Jack's attention on the ball and rolled it toward him several times, but each time Jack ignored the ball completely. Taylor had laughed the whole time, saying Jack probably wouldn't be much of an athlete. Ridge had only countered, "Wait, you'll see!" Finally, he had held the ball in front of Jack's nose, but he had only tried to chew on it, causing Taylor to laugh even harder. As Ridge remembered that scene and how carefree they had all been, he kept throwing the ball against the changing table. Taylor, meanwhile, had taken all of Jack's books off the shelf and started sorting them alphabetically. She didn't know herself what she was doing. For days she had been busy with whatever activities spontaneously popped into her head. Many of the books were old ones from Thomas and the girls. Taylor interrupted the silence.

"I had a dream about him tonight. I can't really remember anything. What if Brooke actually manages to hide with Jack for longer? What if he eventually doesn't know us anymore...or hates us? Surely he must think we've let him down?" She began to cry. Ridge wrapped her in his arms.

"No, he loves us! He'll never forget us, never! We are his parents! He knows perfectly well that we love him."

"But...he must wonder why we're not with him...I mean, surely he notices!"

"Probably, but you'll see, once Jack comes back, everything will be fine."

"If we would at least know if he's okay!"

"We can only pray!"

"I miss him so much!" She buried her face in his shoulders and cried. Ridge struggled with his tears too.

Suddenly the door was yanked open and Phoebe stood in the room.

"Mom! Dad! Come quickly, Lt. Baker is here. Apparently he has a lead on Brooke and Jack." Taylor and Ridge had never been downstairs so fast. They rushed toward Lt Baker.

"What about our son? Where is he?" Everyone waited anxiously.

A very emotional chapter! I would be happy about some feedback!