Chapter 1: Kidnapped

Claire's best friend, Abby, is lost and Claire tries to find her.

My alarm sounded. I woke up very confused, scared and with a bad feeling again. I opened my eyes and I remembered what happened last night. I remember darkness, a cold climate, I remember how fear invade me slowly but I can’t remember anything that happened. My last memory is the raindrop falling in my nose. The window!

I get up quickly to verify the window; the curtains were closed and so was the window… I don’t remember closing them…

I sit in my bed. I think about anything that clears my mind but I simply can’t. I look down to my pajama pants, it has a flowery print.

Wait… when I went to the bathroom last night, I was still in the clothes I wore for school. How am I on pajamas now? And how did I get to bed last night anyway? I remember falling to the floor, not my bed.  

<< ringg! ringg! ringg! >>

My cell phone sounded, it was Abby’s mom… why was she calling me at 7:00 a.m.?

-Hello? - I answered confused.

-Hi Claire, is Abby with you?-Silence. A sight was heard from the other side of the line " She didn’t come back last night. Is she with you?

I panicked.

-No… she’s not… are you sure she is not hidden at your house? " I said nervously, I knew Abby and if she did something bad last night like drinking alcohol or taking drugs she would hide.

-No, I checked everywhere!- I heard how her voice changes because of her levels of desperation growing. " Do you have any idea where she could be?

-No, I’ll try to reach her by her phone, maybe GPS or… - pause- I’ll do anything in my hands. I’m sure she’s fine- I said trying to believe in my own words.

George, I knew I couldn’t trust him. I should’ve forced her to stay with me and not go with him. But it’s too late for that now. Who knows in what kind of danger she’s in right now or what she has been through all night…? I could only imagine terrible things happening to my best friend. What if she was in a terrible dark place hurt? What if he abused of her? What if he hit her or hurt her in terrible ways or worse, what if she was dead? Abby is not the kind of girl that just disappears for fun. She has done it before but she has told me about it so that I don’t worry. She has done it for attention in the past, but at the time about a year and a half ago she felt really bad, she was depressed and feeling lonely. I tried to help her but she never listened.  This is not something Abby would do.

 I called her once… twice… then another time. I left her thousands of texts and tried to find her by GPS but her phone was off.  I started walking in my room in circles, exploring my mind, trying to remember where she said they would be last night at her date but I can’t remember…

Now that I think about it she never said it, she just told me they would meet at 8 p.m. but she didn’t mention any place. I have to look for her! I’m the only one who knows with who she was last night but I can’t tell anyone from her family, she lied to them saying she was going out with his old friend Robbie who came back here for a quick visit to his family. (Robbie doesn’t live here in London, he moved to L.A. 2 years ago)

<< ringg! ringg! ringg! >> Joe was calling me.

Joe! School! I haven’t take a shower yet!

I answered and started to walk quickly to the bathroom to take a shower.

-      Hey I’m outside!

-      -Wait for me 10 minutes, please! Abby’s gone and we are going to look for her!

-What do you mean…?

-I’ll tell you when I get a shower- I interrupted him and ran to the bathroom.

A few minutes later I was at the lake with Joe, we skipped classes to go and look for Abby. I told him about George and despite he doesn’t like Abby at all he worried and try to help me.

We searched around all the lake and ask for her in the nearest restaurants to the lake we could find. We carried a photo of her in our cellphones and asked for her to everyone we faced.

We spent 2 hours looking for her until we decided to go back to school. We had a math evaluation in 20 minutes and we couldn’t miss it. And Joe had a Chemistry test also.

We left the lake. I left the place where maybe my best friend got lost with a deep hole in my heart not knowing anything about her. I called her again but again, her phone was off.

When we arrived school, Joe gave me a hug. Maybe in any other moment I could have felt happy but not under this circumstances.

We both did our math test and continued as if it was any other normal day at school.

Lunch time came but it ended up quickly.

After lunch I had English class, I walked like a human with no soul by the halls, feeling lonely and with a missing piece in my heart. I couldn’t of anything else.

Abby… Abby… Abby…

Her name invading every corner of my head like a soft whisper.

I entered to the classroom and sat in the same place as the day before, near the window.

As I came early to the class I watched every single one of my classmates, I just looked at them to distract myself, avoiding my thoughts and trying not to break into tears.

When the teacher came and was about to close the door, a hand pushed the door so that she didn’t close it. I saw that black jacket, that black jacket that only a serial killer would use and I knew who that person was, the one behind that door trying to enter. Caleb entered to the class and sat in the spot beside me.

Miss. Grace started her class by giving us a guide for a homework. I read the instructions and I saw the homework was in pairs. Everyone in my class gave a look to another classmate in signal of “we’re a pair”. I noticed everyone had a couple to work except for me and Mr. Mysterious beside me. He gave me that look too.

Miss. Grace explained we had to do a journalist work about a topic she would randomly give us. She gave us a paper with the name of our investigation topic and it was:

“Religion: Story of Azier’s church”

I remembered one day when I was a little kid, my dad took us on a short family trip to a small town near London called “Azier Town”. Azier Town is a cultural part of London in which are a lot of old houses, some of them are old mansions, there is also a little lake there that has a beautiful bridge. Azier’s church is one of the biggest attractions for curious people and tourist. Azier’s church is not a church anymore, it used to be one a long time ago but nowadays is more like a museum full of old treasures and religious stuff.

 -Please gather in pair right now to discuss your project. - Said Miss. Grace and everyone started to join their desks with their respective partner. Caleb drag his desk next to me.

-So… It looks like we’ll have to travel a little bit for this project. " Said Caleb with something I think was a winning smile.

<< ringg! ringg! ringg! >>

My phone received a text message. I took it out of my jeans pocket and it was form Abby!!

“SOS Emery St. #4. Please come here ASAP”

I can’t describe the feeling I had at that moment. I felt concerned of going there alone but I felt happy because I knew she was okay. Or at least I knew she was alive.

-It looks like it’s an emergency- Said Caleb suddenly. He read my text!

I made an angry face but I had no time for a discussion. I started picking up my things when another text from Abby came.

“Don’t come alone. Ps. bring me clothes.”

A sight came out my mouth. Clothes was easy, I had some extra clothes in my locker, I’d go for them but my problem was who did I go with and how would I get there? Joe was in class and he has a Chemistry test right now.

I guess I’ll have to trust in destiny and hope it’s in my favor. As I got up from my sit, I went to talk to Miss. Grace and explained Abby was missing and that I just received a text from her. She understood and gave me permission.

-I’m going with her " Mr. Serial Killer appeared on my back. " You’ll need transportation. Emery St. is 20 minutes from here. And I don’t think you’d like to walk, do you?

- I’ll go by myself, thank you. " I got out the classroom and went to my locker, I took the clothes and walked to school’s exit. As I walked in the parking lot I saw Caleb in front of what it looks like his car.

-Come on! Don’t be a fool, I’ll go with you. The road is long and besides you don’t know what you’re up against. Something can happen to you.

-I think I’d be safer alone than I would be with you. " I said firmly.

-Okay, just think about it for one second, you pretend to go alone on a way of 20 minutes by car and you don’t have one, a taxi is hard to find and trains doesn’t get to that street. And if you’re lucky to get there safe and sound, you’ll have a bigger problem. How will get out your best friend out of it faster? Because her kidnapper might be there and if you go by yourselves, you may be kidnapped as well. Or you may not, if you’re lucky, but then you would have to get a quick and safe transportation back here.

I stood in silence for a moment. I haven’t think about anything of it… He was right, and as much as I hate the idea, I have to take his help.

-Fine, let’s go.

And there I was. Getting in a car of a guy I didn’t know and didn’t look so trustable to help rescuing my best friend.

Help me God.