Peanut Butter Sandwich

"Party tonight!"

The man's arm around her startled Caroline. It was much too tight to be friendly.

"And here's your invitation."

She heard the click and felt something very sharp just under her rib cage. She froze, not sure what was happening, not sure what to do.

"Just keep walking, party girl." I'm your date. I'll make sure you get where you need to go."

The shock of the situation, not to mention the vodka and cranberry drinks she'd had with her friend Marrissa earlier, made her a little slower than usual to react, so the man pulled her forward along the sidewalk with him. To any passersby, the two looked like a typical Saturday night couple in downtown Chattanooga, Tennessee. The streets were full of people just like them: men and women walking to or from their cars, between bars and clubs, his arm around her, maybe even stumbling a little at times. No one would think twice about what they saw.

Caroline and Marrissa had been at one of those clubs earlier. Blue Water Grill. It was girls night out for them, which they did about once a month, picking a new place every time. This time it was downtown. Caroline loved downtown Chattanooga. It was always full of people, especially in the spring and summer. There was a vibe here. It was full of excitement.

She and Marrissa had lots of fun tonight. They always did. They talked about work and family and relationships as they drank and nibbled on appetizers. They flirted mercilessly with their short-haired, 20-something waiter with the tattoos. He didn't seem to mind showing them off, explaining what they meant and why -- and where -- he got them. He got them each to buy at least one more drink than they ordinarily would have.

It wasn't late, probably around 9:30. Dark for maybe an hour. The town was definitely breathing life now. Caroline had told her kids she wouldn't be late. The oldest was 15, so she could enjoy nights out like this sometimes without having to worry.

She was worried now as they turned the corner to a less-traveled area.

"Where are we going?" Caroline asked nervously.

"Right here, Baby," the man told her as an SUV pulled up beside them. Caroline panicked as he opened the door.

"You've got me mixed up with someone else," she pleaded. "I'm just on my way home."

"And you'll get home later if you do what I tell you now," he replied calmly but forcefully, making sure she saw the 4" pocketknife before again pressing it tightly against the lower edge of her rib cage. It had already made a cut in the white blouse she wore. Summers and even the spring in Chattanooga, Tennessee, were humid and you were always aware of that when you dressed to go out. Caroline often wore a thin blouse and as short a skirt as she could get away with. Tonight it was a denim skirt about mid-thigh with low-heeled, open-toed shoes that showed off her freshly-painted, green toenails.

"Get in."

Caroline stood and didn't move.

"I can't. I don't want to." She was terrified.

"It's not a request, honey."

He gripped her wrist and twisted it behind her.

"No! What are you doing? Why are you doing this?"

He pushed her into the back seat of the vehicle. Hard. He followed behind her, shut the door and the vehicle pulled away from the curb.

*************************

By the time they arrived at what seemed to be their destination about 20 minutes later, Caroline's wrists were duct taped behind her and there was another piece of the silver adhesive pressed tightly over her mouth. She didn't fight her captor; the whole thing was insanely surreal to the point where she couldn't do anything but focus on breathing.

They stopped in a quiet residential area, pulled into a garage and closed the door behind them.

"We're here, Baby. Time to party!"

The man with the knife helped Caroline out of the vehicle and into the house. She didn't fight him and he didn't seem particularly rough. She knew she was in a bad place and didn't want to make it worse.

The house was quite nice. They were in a carpeted living room and sat Caroline on a sofa. There was an end table near the end of the sofa where she sat, still concentrating on breathing as calmly as she could with the tape over her mouth, and matching table on the other end with lamps on both. There was a big, stuffed chair near the wall and what looked to be a front door just over from it. Caroline assumed the door was locked. She knew the entrance to the garage was locked because she watched the driver set the dead bolt as he came in, before he disappeared into the kitchen.

"Make us some drinks, Mike," the man with the knife called out to the kitchen. "It's not a party without some adult beverages," he told Caroline. "In fact, let's all do a shot to start with. Shots of tequila, Mike!"

Caroline continued to look around the room. It had a homey feel to it, but she noticed a clamshell lighting set up with umbrellas and reflectors in one corner of the room. Somebody had a home photography studio here.

She noticed a hallway and could see that one of the rooms off it was a bathroom. That's the only room she could see. There were also stairs with carpet that matched the living room.

"It's a private party, pretty girl. Everyone who's invited is here. You can call me Adam and my friend in there, Mike. We were checking out you and your friend at Blue Water tonight and I said to Mike there, 'That's the girl we want to take back to the party at your place.' You look good. Damn good. And you seem like a lot of fun."

He opened up the purse Caroline had been carrying earlier in the evening. She had lost track of it in the vehicle, but Adam must have brought it in with him. It wasn't big and he had no trouble finding her wallet immediately. She had about 30 bucks cash in it, but she knew money wasn't what they were after. At least not the money in her wallet. A ransom maybe. But she wasn't rich and neither was her family.

He looked at the cash, but put it back in the wallet. Then he found her driver's license and pulled it out.

"Caroline Conley" he read. "That's a nice picture. You don't see a lot of good driver's license pictures. Hey, Mike -- nice picture, eh?"

Mike had three drinks -- three shots of tequila -- in his hands, but leaned over to look at the picture.

"Not bad," he said as he set the drinks down. "But definitely not professional. We should take some professional pictures."

"That's a very good idea, Mike. Get your stuff."

Caroline's eyes widened and her breathing increased. She pulled away as Adam took her arm.

"Hmm-mmm," she shook her head.

Adam stopped and looked at her. "I'm sorry, Caroline. Let me make this clear to you: if you do what I tell you to do, you can be home in two or three hours. I told you that in our walk through downtown. I guess what I didn't tell you is that if you do not do exactly what I tell you......."

Adam suddenly swung the knife furiously and buried it to the hilt in the pillow right next to Caroline. Dangerously close to Caroline. He slashed it sideways, pulled the knife out, then stabbed and slashed again. He looked directly into Caroline's wide and frightened eyes

".......I will kill you. And I'm not fucking around. This is your call, honey."

Caroline began to shake. She felt tears welling up. Adam composed himself.

"But I don't want that. And I know you don't want that. We're here to have some fun."

Adam swallowed his shot of tequila and let it settle. Mike had returned with his camera. And this time Caroline didn't fight as Adam took her arm and walked her over to the lighted studio array.

Mike took dozens of pictures. Pictures of Caroline kneeling, laying face down and on her side. Pictures with her skirt hiked to show some of her lacy panties. Pictures with her blouse opened down to the last two buttons. Close-ups of her wrists. Close-ups of her face. He was good; he gave clear instructions on the poses he wanted and even moved her to them if she didn't quite get it herself. It was clear, no matter how much Caroline had tried to convince herself otherwise, why she was there.

Adam, meantime, had found the phone in Caroline's purse and was scrolling through the names in the address book.

"You got kids, Caroline?" he asked.

She wasn't sure how to respond. She didn't want to put them in danger. But she thought if her kidnappers saw her as human -- a mom -- they might just let her go.

She nodded in the affirmative.

"You're not wearing a ring, so I assume you're not married. Boyfriend?"

Again Caroline nodded yes.

OK. Here's what we're going to do. We don't want anybody to worry about you. So you're going to call your kids and your boyfriend and tell them what you're doing. And not to worry, that you'll be home later. Understand?"

A million thoughts went through Caroline's mind. Maybe she could dial 911 instead of her daughter's number. Maybe she could somehow subtly clue her boyfriend in to the fact that she was in trouble. Maybe she didn't have to be subtle.

"Caroline?" Adam's voice had a more urgent feel to it this time. She replied with a nod.

"Good. Obviously, that means we're going to remove some of the duct tape. But if you start screaming or yelling or carrying on, it'll go right back on and, eventually, your kids will start worrying and your boyfriend will start worrying and probably with good reason. We're still going to have our party. But the choice of what happens afterwards is completely up to you. Is that clear?"

Caroline shook her head yes and Mike ripped the tape free. It stung a little, but not badly. It was a relief to have it off. It was much easier to breathe. She took deep breaths.

"First, you're going to call your kids and let them know you'll be out a while. How old are they?"

"Fifteen. And nine," Caroline replied softly. She didn't look at Adam.

"Babysitter tonight?"

"No."

"Yeah. Fifteen's a little old for a babysitter. Is the oldest a girl or boy?"

"Girl." Caroline kept her answers short. She wasn't volunteering any information.

"And the younger?"

"Boy."

"Alright. Call the girl and tell her you were invited to a party and you're stopping by for a little while. Tell her you'll be home by one. And I'd better hear calmness in your voice and happiness in your voice and if there's any kind of argument or backtalk, you'd better solve it in a hurry. Or that will be the last phone call she ever gets from momma."

That was actually probably best, she thought. The last thing she wanted to do was scare Kaci and Josh, especially since it seemed there was a good chance she could eventually get out of this. They were at a private residence, they didn't want to kill her, she reasoned, since that would be very complicated. But from the tone in Adam's voice, the look in his eye, and the way he wildly swung that four-inch blade he seemed so fond of -- not to mention the fact that he was already doing tequila shots -- she had almost no doubt he would if she made him angry.

"Who am I looking for here?" Adam asked, scrolling through Caroline's contacts.

"Kaci Conley."

They weren't going to let her enter the number. Her wrists were still bound behind her.

"Found it. Ready for this momma?"

"I'm ok," Caroline said as much to assure herself as anything else.

Adam moved around behind her and put his knife to her neck. "Well you'd damned well better be convincing."

He pushed call and held the phone to her ear. When Kaci answered, Caroline put on her "mom voice" and told her exactly what Adam wanted to hear: that she had been invited to a party, it seemed like fun, and she was going to stop by for a couple of hours, that she'd be home by one. No, she wasn't with Kevin. He was busy tonight. She had to assure Josh that it was ok for him to go to sleep in her bed and she'd tuck him in when she got back. She made sure to tell them she loved them before she hung up.

It wasn't a stretch. Caroline knew that's what her kids needed to hear -- reassurance if she was staying out past what was originally planned. She was a mom first and foremost, but she majored in theater in college, had taught acting and still did some occasional acting in community theater. She was very convincing and Adam seemed pleased when he pressed the red button to end the call.

"Good job, lovely lady! Let's toast."

Mike had poured more shots for he and Adam while Caroline was on the phone. Adam took a glass in each hand and clinked the together. He set his down, then put Caroline's to her lips. She didn't open until Adam pulled her hair back.

The tequila burned as it went down. She had to swallow quickly to keep up with it and still, some of it dribbled down her chin. With the alcohol she'd already had earlier, it wasn't like she needed more, especially a straight shot of tequila.

Adam downed his and smacked his lips.

"Another idea," he announced. "Your friend is really cute. Maybe you could call her and tell her you're at a party and want to her to come. We'll go get her, too. What's her number?"

Caroline did not want that to happen. She could keep that from happening.

"I don't have it in there. She has a new phone and I don't have her number."

"Oh, well. It was worth a try. You're the hot one anyway." He didn't pursue his spur-of-the-moment idea. It didn't seem to matter. "We gotta call your boyfriend. Is he the jealous type?"

He wasn't. At all. He often told her to do anything she wanted to as long as she was having fun doing it. Or to try anything she wanted to just because she wanted to. He said it made them more interesting people for each other. And she had come to understand he was right and she loved him for it. He already knew she belonged to him and he belonged to her. And that was so solid, he was so sure of that he said, that nothing else mattered.

He just as often told her he loved her and she and he were destined to be together since before they ever met. They had only one rule between them and they called it Rule #1: Always come back to me safely.

That's what she intended to do. She and Kevin often did role-play sex games and sometimes even included other partners. There were occasions it got quite rough. But they had their safe word. All Caroline had to do was ask for a peanut butter sandwich and everything stopped right there. She'd never done it and doubted she ever would. But knowing the safe word was there just in case -- and trusting Kevin so completely as she did -- allowed her to totally let go in ways she had never been able to do before. She also found the more she did it, the more she wanted it. Craved it.

A peanut butter sandwich. He'd know if he heard her say it. She thought maybe she could work it into the phone conversation if they made her call him, but the thought was only fleeting.

"Kevin's not jealous," she told him. It was the truth, but neither did she want these guys to get any suspicions that they might be facing retribution. It was impossible to predict what they might do if they thought that. And Caroline wasn't thinking as clearly now anyway. She was feeling that tequila shot.

And another one was on the way. Mike had brought the bottle out from the kitchen and refilled all their glasses.

"Here's to non-jealousy!" declared Adam, repeating his procedure from moments ago, pulling her head back by her hair and pouring the tequila into Caroline.

"To non-jealousy!" seconded Mike as he downed a shot, too. Adam followed suit, then scrolled through the phone again looking at names.

"Kevin." He spelled it out slowly as he typed the letters into the search function. There were two Kevins. "Wilson? Is it Kevin Wilson? I hope so because I can't pronounce the other one.

Caroline nodded. She still felt the burn from the last tequila shot. It was actually having a positive effect on her in that it was calming her down pretty significantly.

"Alright, Baby. Same routine as the last call. Tell him you got invited to a party and you decided to check it out for a while, that you'll call him later. If he's not jealous like you say, he won't mind. And it'll keep him from ringing your phone trying to find you."

Adam pressed call and held the phone up for Caroline. It rang five times. On the sixth ring, it cut off and Kevin's recorded greeting came on.

"I got the voice mail," Caroline whispered.

"So leave him a voice mail." He didn't sound angry or curt. He simply told her what she was to do.

And she did it. Caroline shifted back into actress mode when she heard the beep.

"Hey, Baby. It's me. Listen...I got invited to a party tonight after Marrissa had to go home from Blue Water. It sounds like fun, so I'm going to check it out for a while. Didn't want you to worry. Hope you have fun doing whatever it is you're doing tonight. I'll call you later. Love you."

Adam ended the call and tossed the phone onto the floor across the room. He turned Caroline's head toward him and lightly kissed her lips. She closed her eyes and did not kiss him back. He smiled.

"This might be a good time to go over the rules," he mused. "Look at me"

Caroline opened her eyes. It's the first time she really noticed what Adam looked like: about 5'10", maybe 160 pounds, dark hair, fairly short. No tats, at least that she could see, no scars, a little stubble on his face, but not more than a day's growth at best. He wore a button-down shirt, jeans and tennis shoes. He didn't look overly-muscled, but from the way he handled her there was no doubt in Caroline's mind that he worked out frequently. He was strong.

How much of it was attributed to the alcohol she didn't know, but he didn't look bad. And he was obviously the one in charge. That much was quite clear.

Adam looked into her eyes. "First, you will follow all directions exactly as Mike and I give them. If you do what we tell you, I don't have to hurt you. Can you follow instructions?"

She waited. She didn't want to agree to anything. But sitting on the floor with her wrists duct taped behind her didn't give her much of a choice. She nodded.

"Then tell me you can follow instructions. Look at me."

Caroline complied. "I can follow instructions," she told him.

"Will you follow instructions?"

She hesitated. "Yes."

"Good. I really don't want to hurt you. But I will. Unless you do everything we tell you to do. And -- and this is very important, it's rule number two of two -- I want to see you enjoying yourself. I want to see you having fun. " He leaned close and spoke slowly and softly. "You'd better damn well make me believe you're having a great time."

He looked at his friend who was sitting in the stuffed chair. "Anything else, Mike?"

"Nope. That's takes care of it. And I think she likes to have a good time. She sure was earlier tonight with her friend. You like to have a good time, don't you, Caroline?"

She didn't answer until Adam told her to look at him and tell him she likes to have a good time.

"I like to have a good time."

Mike was bigger than Adam. He was about 6'0" and probably around 215 or so. Not muscley, but seemingly in pretty good shape. He had a shaved head, wore shorts, sandals and a short-sleeved polo shirt, which he pulled over his head and dropped to the floor. The abs weren't a six-pack, but they weren't flabby, either.

"I intend to have a really good time with you," he said.

Mike moved toward her. Caroline tried to move away but there was nowhere to go. She pulled her legs toward her as far as she could. He grabbed her and pulled her to the middle of the floor, then reached under her skirt. She fought him as he tried to remove her panties, kicking and turning.

"No! No! I'm not going to let you do this!"

Adam seemed amused by the struggle. Caroline was on her stomach when he handed Mike the knife and Mike put the point to her throat.

"You seem to have forgotten our deal, honey," he panted. She was strong, but she wasn't about to move with the point of the knife against her windpipe. "Our deal is about showing us you're enjoying yourself. That'll change. I guarantee that'll change. But let's see if you can follow instructions."