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I searched the house quickly, going through every room thoroughly, like I was playing a game of hide and seek, though no one told me ahead of time. I kept calling out to them, over and over again. Nobody was there and the more I looked, the more desperate I became. Where were they? They were gone and I was left standing there like an idiot, not knowing what was going to happen next.
My first thought was to call Amber, but I didn't get an answer from her. I called Alice's phone and heard it ringing upstairs. I went out to the car that Amber drove and there was nothing to give away a clue. Then I thought of the pool house. That must be where they are!
There was a small shattering of hope that ran through me as I made my way to the pool house. They wouldn't have heard me if they were in the pool house, even though I was yelling for them in the main house. There was enough space in between, not to mention the noise from the waterfall. That's what it was. Here I was freaking out for no reason at all.
When I got to the pool house, I fully expected to find Amber and my daughter there. Where else could they be? Nobody was there though; the place was just as empty as I had imagined. Amber was gone and so was Alice.
I went back to the main house and looked around, trying to find clues or a note of where they were. Something. There was nothing on the fridge, by the beds, and the only thing that I did notice out of the way was that Alice's medicine was gone. Why would her medicine be gone? It wasn't something that she had to take for another eight hours, so why would it have been taken?
That was probably the final straw for me. I wanted everything to be okay, for it to all be a misunderstanding, but her missing medicine, my missing daughter and nanny, certainly made it hard to imagine. Where were they?
That question just kept playing in my head. I was about to call the police when I got a call on my cell phone. Before the answer could even register, I was picking it up and saying hello.
“Frank, right?”
I agreed that it was. The voice was not one that I knew.
“Yeah, this is Frank. What can I do for you?”
“It's not what you can do for me, Frank, it's what can I do for you. I bet you're starting to realize now that you're missing something, something maybe close to your heart?”
My heart sunk in my chest. They were gone and the man on the other side of the phone was the reason for it. I just knew it. Who was this guy?
“Who is this?”
“The man who has your daughter and nanny, or your girlfriend, huh? I have them and you are going to give me what I want to get them back safe. Deal?”
Fuck. This was worse than I could have ever imagined.
“If you do anything to either one of them, I will kill you.”
“I heard you're a doctor. Didn't you have to take an oath or something? Do no harm?”
“When you fuck with my family, that's a little bit different. I will have no problem stomping on the oath and your face. You give me my daughter back.”
“What about Amber?”
“Her too, she belongs here.”
“Amber was mine not but a week ago.”
“That very well may be, but she's mine now.”
“It doesn’t seem like you are in any position to talk to me that way. Don’t you know how to negotiate?”
“Fine, just tell me what the hell it is you want, Tommy.”
He laughed. “I’m glad that we both know what this is now.”
I knew what it was. It was a damn shake-down.
35
Amber
Everything was now a mess. The guy that I had called when things were desperate, when I needed some attention, was now the same guy that was standing in front of me holding a gun. It had taken a few minutes for me to get through the cognitive dissonance that it caused. I couldn't believe what was happening. What the hell was Tommy doing here? Furthermore, what was he doing here with a gun? It didn't make any sense. I kept looking at him and I could see his mouth moving, but I couldn't actually move forward myself. I just didn't understand. Why was he yelling at me and threatening me?
“What is going on, Tommy?”
