The road up the mountain was rocky, and Cass found herself being bounced around in the front seat of the Jeep. Luckily Colin had buckled the seat belt, however with her wrists still bound behind her back, it was impossible to stay in one place. They drove along in silence for about an hour, going straight up on the dirt road and taking a few random turns. Cass had the feeling that he was trying to confuse her by going in what seemed like a circle at times.
Colin was particularly glad the she was silent during the ride. He was kicking himself that he told her his real name. He may as well of given her is address while he was at it. There was something about Cass that got under his skin, and every time she called him "William" it was like nails on a chalkboard to hear it. He wanted to tell her that he wasn't a criminal, that he was doing this as a last resort. He wanted her to know that he had a real job, and even had a college degree. He could only imagine what she thought of him now. He tried to clear those kinds of thoughts from his head. What did it matter what she thought? Colin looked at her from the corner of his eye. She sat straight up, staring ahead, her lips in a scowl. He remembered how she had yelled at him, and had to fight back a slight smile.
Cass, on the other hand, was thinking about how she was about 5 seconds from nailing him in the eye with her stiletto if he didn't wipe that smirk off of his face. How dare he think this was funny, she thought to herself.
As they finally stopped sunlight was starting to creep up from the east, allowing Cass to get a view of where they were stopping at. In front of her there was a cabin, though ancient looking, even she could tell that it was well made. It was small, but had a look that at one time it was very well loved by its owners. It was made from what looked like local wood, and had a small porch in the front.
Colin rolled down the window a quarter of the way, and then got out of the Jeep. He locked the doors before he slammed the door shut. He then went to the front of the cabin and unlocked the door.
"Where the hell do you think you're going," Cass shrieked, "You can't just leave me here."
"There is no way I am going to let you out until I finish unloading the Jeep," he retorted, as he went inside the cabin.
"What am I going to hop away? Or better yet roll down the mountain?" she yelled back at him.
He laughed. He knew she was partly right, but there was no way that he was going to give into her demands. He had already given her his name, and that was enough for now. He made several trips from the Jeep to the cabin, carefully avoiding her glare. He finished putting away all the supplies and then walked back out and unlocked the passenger door.
"How nice of you to remember me," she said snidely, refusing to look at him.
"Like any man would forget you, Princess. All they would need is to taste your sweetness and they'd be hooked for life," he said, looking at her lewdly, as she sat in the seat.
She gasped. "You son of—" He put his hand over her mouth.
"Yes, we know Princess. Son of a bitch! Already old news, and unless you have something to say worth listening to, I'd advise you to keep it to yourself," he said smoothly. "If you can't control your mouth, I'd be happy to gag you again."
Her blue eyes glittered with hatred, but when he took his hand away she said nothing. She gasped again when he pulled the knife from the sheath at his side. He taunted her by holding the knife near her face, and slowly sliding the cold metal down her side and then leg, until it met the tape that bound her ankles. He quickly sliced the tape and grabbed her arm, hauling her out of the Jeep. He put the knife back in its holder and reached down and grabbed her stilettos. He then flung them as hard as he could down the mountainside.
"Don't have much use for those up here, Princess, now do you?" he laughed at her as he dragged her into the cabin. She remained silent.
Right inside the cabin there was a small living room with a sofa, recliner and fireplace, which was already lit. To the left of the living room and the entrance there was a small kitchen with a hallway leading off of the back wall. Colin pulled Cass through the kitchen and down the hall, opening a door that led to a bedroom, passing another door that Cass hoped was the restroom.
He led her into the room, and proceeded to cut the tape that bound her wrists. Then without a word backed out of the door, shutting it and locking it from the outside. He then went into the living room and sat on the recliner, letting the weariness overtake him.
Cass couldn't believe that Colin had just left her locked in this room. Granted, it wasn't a prison cell. There was a large bed, a dresser, and a space heater. She went over to the dresser and started looking through the drawers and found blankets and towels. The room was small and windowless, and the bed took up most of the space. She couldn't help but notice that the bed looked extremely comfortable, and in her exhaustion, fell onto the soft quilt and into a deep sleep.
*****
Jack Connelly awoke in the morning and his first thought was wondering what time his daughter had come home. He got up and turned off the television he had fallen asleep in front of the night before and went down the hall to see if Cass was up yet. He saw that her door was open, and the bed had not appeared to be slept in. She must've stayed at Lana's house, he thought to himself as he went to the study to get his cell phone.
When he turned it on, he saw that he had two messages. The first one was from Cass telling him that she was staying over at her friends. He chuckled at how she sounded, thinking that maybe she had too much to drink. The second one was from an unknown number, and as he listened to the message his body started to tremble as his face turned white.
After the message he immediately called his friend, the Chief of Police at Riverdale P.D. When Chief Matthews finally picked up the phone, Jack was almost hysterical.
"Don," he gasped into the phone. "Someone's taken my daughter... someone has Cass."
The chief said that he would be right over and hung up. Jack then called Lorraine and she also said she would be on her way. After the calls he wearily sat down in his chair behind his desk, and put his head in his hands.
That was exactly how Lorraine found him thirty minutes later. He stood up as she came around the desk and put her arms around him, holding him as he sobbed in anguish.
"This is all my fault... I should've had more protection on her... I should have made her stay home," he sobbed.
Lorraine tried to comfort him as best as she could. She kept holding him until Chief Matthews strode into the room. Jack and Lorraine straightened up, and then Jack picked up the cell phone and played the message over the speaker.
"Greetings, Mr. Connelly" the voice said, "I have your daughter. She is currently being held in a distant location, and is safe... for now. To ensure her safety, and my consideration towards returning her, I will need five million dollars. I will be in touch."
******
