BMB: Version 3-2

Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction, and it was created solely by me as the author. Any similarities to characters, businesses, places, or things are all happenstance, though my appreciation to those who have inspired my works is immense.

Author's Note: This entire series is based on the same characters, places, and general situations, but will be shared in the form of five different versions. I'm hoping you'll appreciate the various approaches as they are posted. And be aware, some versions go into certain details more than others, so remaining calm and awaiting the next installment may be necessary, but I assure you, it'll be worth it. Questions and comments are welcome. I hope everyone will be kind.

And this story will make little to no sense if you haven't read Version 3-1. For my avid readers, I've included a bonus recap. ENJOY!

Recap: I left the house and walked down the driveway. I wanted to talk to Jen. I called her and told her about the news I'd just discovered, about my mom's reaction to Tom, how she did her whole high and mighty act, and how I was on a walk to process the whole situation. I knew it was dark, but I felt like heading to the field next to the park in the neighborhood. It was quiet & safe.

Jen was quiet as she thought about what to say to me. I knew Jen was relieved to know that Tom was going to be with me for the whole move. It had been one of her many voiced concerns while we'd discussed my decision to go forward with the move and new job and new life.

"Oh, hey," I told Jen to break the silence as I crossed the street. "The twins are parked up ahead. Weird. I wonder what they're up to." The twins were from our school and were known around town as local troublemakers. Nothing dangerous or crazy, but they'd been known to be an issue on the police radar for as long as I could remember.

"So, are you gonna be OK?" Jen asked bringing me out of my thoughts about the two men parked near the park. They were probably waiting to go to the playground to vandalize it with lewd images spraypainted onto the slides. It wouldn't be the first time. It made me roll my eyes. Jen continued, "Do you want me to come meet you there?"

"I don't know. I'm gonna be at our usual place in the grass. Might be safer if two of us are together since it's dark. Then you can come and yell at Tom after we're done." We both laughed.

"I'll be there in five," she promised. I heard her turning on her car as she'd spoken her final sentence. I told her I'd see her soon and hung up. I set the phone on the grass and laid down facing up at the stars.

When I heard footsteps only three minutes later, I was surprised. "Geez, that was fast!" I told my approaching friend. But then I heard two familiar laughs as one grabbed my legs and the other covered my face with a cloth. Strong smell... oh... fading fast...

BMB: Version 3-2

A pounding at the door startled me as I sat on the couch waiting for Trin to return to the house. I didn't like that she had gone out on a walk after dark, but she'd assured me over the last two weeks that this was one of the safest neighborhoods in town, and everyone was always looking out for everyone.

I jumped up and ran for the door. Why the pounding? When I saw Jen standing there with a worried look on her face and completely out of breath, my face dropped. "What's wrong?"

"I went to meet Trin at the spot in the grass where we always meet, but she's not there. I called out for her, but she didn't answer. I found her phone. Something's wrong!"

"Did she text anyone?" I asked her and shoved the phone at her. "Do you know her password?"

"I checked," she answered quickly. "I was talking to her right up until she got to the grass."

"Would she have gone somewhere with anyone?"

"No way," Jen told me with a hard shake of her head. "I had told her I was on my way. I swear, Tom. It only took me five minutes."

"OK," I resolved, "so we know she didn't leave willingly because she was waiting for you. She's always telling me that this is a safe neighborhood, and neighbors watch out for each other. Maybe someone saw something?" Just then, there was a quiet knock at the door. I turned to open it as we hadn't moved from there except to close the door because the air was on.

Jen turned quickly to open the screen door. Apparently, she knew Trin's neighbor. The purple hue looked to have been refreshed recently. "Hi, Mrs. Penney," Jen greeted her.

"Hello, Jennifer," she answered and placed her cane against the wall before she folded her hands. We invited her in so we could close the door. "I think I saw something while walking little Max here," she stated as she pointed at her little dog. "Were you just at the field by the park? Were you meeting Trinity there?" Jen nodded. "Well, two boys approached her. I didn't hear anything, but there was quick movement. They were in a little car parked on the main street. When they drove by, I didn't see Trin, but I got the make and model of the car. The plates started with a T-I-P. I know because those are Trinity's initials. She once joked and said that she needed to find a guy whose initials were T-O-P so they could be 'TipTop.'"

"I'm calling the police," Jen declared. I invited Mrs. Penney to stay for a while, but she chose to bring her dog home and promised to return when the police came. I sat on the couch and put my head back. What in the world could I do? How could I help? Who did I know? And then it hit me. I picked up my phone and called Mike from the shop where I was keeping my bike.

"Hell-oh," Mike answered in his usual fashion. I didn't hesitate to start talking. He'd figure out who I was once I began.

"Mike, I think Trin was kidnapped," I began. "A couple of guys with a..." I hesitated as I opened the piece of paper Mrs. Penney handed me, "a gray Honda Civic with plates starting with T-I-P. Know anything about that car? Any chance you could check?"

I was actually sitting here at work still, so let me look that up quick," Mike told me. "So, uh, I didn't hear from you after you came and got your stuff Saturday morning. I'm guessing things went well?"

"Don't have time to answer that, but yeah, we need to catch up, huh? Let's get her back, and I'll make sure to update you. No," I corrected. "We will."

"Alright, yep," Mike stated and sighed. "I thought that sounded familiar. Last name is Tinsley. Twins, Scott and Shawn. Always been known troublemakers around these parts. Shit. Let me call one of my cop buddies. I'll get back to you." He hung up before I could tell him we'd called the police already. Maybe he could get the info to someone, and they could relay the message.

"Tinsley sound familiar?" I asked Jen.

"Twins, yeah," Jen said absentmindedly as she scrolled through Trin's phone. She suddenly turned and faced me. "She said she saw them parked up ahead when we were talking as she walked to the park. Oh, God, Tom. What's going on?"

Thankfully, there was a knock at the door, and Jen took her attention from me to open it. "Hi, Dan," Jen greeted the officer and welcomed him into the house. When Jen saw me looking at them both questionably, she nodded. "We went to high school together. We have an agreement to not use formal titles. And we dated a long while back. It's just better to keep it old-school." She sighed and turned to look at Dan. "Dan, this is Tom. Tom, Officer Quinlan."

We shook hands, and Dan began to speak. "We got the call from Mike Pedersen and already have all the cars in town looking for them and the plates. What I need to know is why. Why would they have taken her?"

"No idea," Jen answered and shrugged.

"Alright," Dan answered and rolled his eyes at me. "Let's try this again. I need any and all information which might lead us in the right direction."

"Her last day at work was two weeks ago," I began and shared as much as I could think would be relevant. "She's been off and getting ready to move to New York to make a new life for herself. Other than sharing about her life and showing me around, we've been together here in the house for almost all that time. I don't know what they look like, but I've never noticed anything odd or shady when we've been out."

"And you are?" Dan asked.

"Her boyfriend," Jen and I answered at the same time.

"OK," Dan responded and handed me his pad of paper and pen. "Name, number, address, birthdate, etc." I wrote down all that he asked and added the description and plate number of my bike just in case they wanted to know about my vehicle.

"So, she went for a walk tonight and headed for the park to lie down in the grass like she's done for years," Jen explained. "I was on my way to meet her. Five minutes, Dan. I was on the phone with her until I got into the car, and by the time I got there, only her phone was sitting there. Mrs. Penney was walking her dog and saw the make, model, and plate letters."

"Mrs. Penney is still alive?" Dan asked under his breath to Jen which made her laugh. "Wow. I'm going to need to speak with her."

"She said she'd be right over," Jen informed him. He took out a tablet and started to type something in and then brought up an app to show me two pictures of individual men.

"These are the twins," he shared. "Recognize them?"

"No, not at all," I told him. They had faces which would have been memorable, so I was sure I hadn't seen them while Trin and I walked or hung out any place.

"OK, well, I have to show these to her, but I have to add more so it doesn't sway her judgment," Dan explained. "It was dark, even when she saw or heard them, so she may not be able to reliably claim she witnessed anything."

Just then Mrs. Penney walked into the house and straight up to Dan. They spoke for a short while, and then Dan showed her the tablet. I decided to sit back down and rest my head again. And then my phone rang.

"Mike?" I answered when I saw his name come up.

"Is Officer Quinlan at the house?"

"Yeah, he's here," I answered.

"Can you let me talk to him?"

"Sure. Off... um, Dan? Mike's on the phone." Dan took it and walked outside the house. I put my head back and rested some more. Who would want to take her? What reason would they have? Were there people who thought she had money because she was a widow? Were there people trying to extort her? What about the fact that she was moving away? Was someone mad about that? What would the twins have to do with it? Was it some joke?

"Jen, has she ever shared that anyone has tried to swindle her out of money since Mark died? Insurance money or any savings they had?" I asked. "Do you think this is about money?"

"I wouldn't think so," Jen answered. "I was thinking it might be about the fact that she's moving in general. But I can't figure out what they thought they'd get out of taking her. What? Did they think they could change her mind? Why?! Who would be that upset by it?" We both looked at each other with wide eyes suddenly.

"Her mom?" we both asked each other.

Jen picked up her phone and made a call. "It's Jen. Don't say anything, please, unless I ask it of you. Please say 'Oh, hey. What can I do for you?' if she's in the room with you. Otherwise, just answer." Jen paused. "Trin's been kidnapped. Is she capable of doing something so drastic? Say 'sure' if the answer is 'yes.'" Jen paused. "The police are here, and the Tinsley twins have been linked. I'm going to assume you know nothing about it. Am I correct? Please say 'yes' or 'no.'" She paused. "OK, I'll be in touch." Jen hung up and ran out the front door.

I laid my head back on the couch. Would she really have done it? What did she think it would do? Make her want to stay? "Oh! That's how serious you are about not wanting me to leave. OK. Thanks for loving me so much by having me kidnapped! Let's all live in perfect harmony now that you're happy!" I scoffed at the idea of it. I'd heard stories of people doing stupid things. This may have taken the cake.

Jen came walking back in and sat hard on the couch next to me. She immediately laid her head on my arm. "This sucks, Parker. She doesn't deserve this, and neither do you. I didn't tell her how I felt when she told me about your news, but I understand why you chose the route you did to share when you did. She's a little upset, but even as she told me about it, she made excuses for your decision to wait. She's upset, but not at you. She's making some massively huge decisions, and she's scared to death about making one wrong one. I think I'm most excited about the fact that she's allowed herself the time and fun she's been having with you to happen. I like you, and I hope to see her keep you around. Hopefully, you got all the unstated things out in the open?"

Yes, Jen," I told her and nodded lightly. "It's all out there now. So, how dangerous are these twins we're talking about?"

"Oh, they'd never hurt Trin really," Jen answered. "It's that they managed to take her without being heard that freaks me out. Chloroform, maybe? I mean, even if it was just meant to be a joke, that's taking it too far. And what did her mom think having her kidnapped was going to do? Change her mind? I would think when she met you tonight that she would have seen a change in her. Trin's confidence is through the roof. She's not just putting on an air of confidence. She's exuding it. She's able to do that because of you. The little spring in her step she once had is back, and we've waited months to see it, Tom. You did that."

"Jen, I asked for her father's blessing to eventually ask for her hand in marriage," I admitted quietly. "I knew it the night we met. I've only grown in my love for her. I have no doubts."

"Did her mom hear it?"

"Hell, no," I answered and felt Jen laugh against my arm. "Trin was helping her do the dishes, so I informed Mr. Powers about how I had met her and was honest about the fact that while time was short, my love of her was far from it. And then I told him what I really do for a 'job' and promised him a good life for his daughter."

"You're good people, Tom," Jen told me and squeezed my arm. "Man, I need to see her. My stomach is in knots."

The front door opened, and Dan walked in. "No sighting yet, but we'll be looking until we find the car, the twins, and her. We have officers 'informing' her parents as we speak, and the strategy we're using is to separate the two and have our highly trained body language experts interviewing them. We're fairly certain Mr. Powers really couldn't have had a hand in it. We hope to get Mrs. Powers to name people whom she may have talked to about it. The officer interviewing her is really good at her job. She once did a workshop and managed to run a session as an example of how it works. I was her volunteer. Next thing I know, I'm happily sharing with her names of my past girlfriends. It was embarrassing, but a great learning tool."

"Is there anything we can do?" I asked him. "We're kinda going stir-crazy."

"Between the fact that it's dark and have been following leads since before we even arrived at the scene of the first call, there's nothing you can do. Since she left her phone at the field, we know she probably can't call either of you without your numbers, and we can't locate her by her phone either, obviously. If she calls her parents, we have instructed them to notify us immediately. No landline here, right?" Jen shook her head. "We'll find her, Jen," Dan promised. "Hang in there."

Jen and I woke up on the couch to a loud knock at the door. The sun was out just enough to light up the room. Jen jumped up and ran to the kitchen. I had no idea where she was going. I got up and quickly opened the front door.

"Um, hi," I greeted the woman standing at the door with a casserole dish in her hands. "Can I help you?"

"Oh, you must be Tom," the woman told me and tried to look behind me. Just then, Jen came walking up behind her. "Oh, hello, Jennifer."

"Hi, Mrs. Nethers," Jen greeted her as if she was just someone she knew. "What do you have there? You know it's only 5:30 in the morning, right?"

"Oh, I haven't slept a wink since finding out that poor girl has been missing," Mrs. Nethers informed us, her voice dripping with despondency. "I'm just so worried about Marie! First Trinity decides to move away without even considering what it will do to her poor mother, and then this happens! Thank goodness Marie has her friends to be with her at this difficult time. Well," she said after about three seconds in a completely different manner, "I made this casserole to keep you two fed while you wait for news. Do let me know if you need anything else. You know where I live, Jen. The big house on Prairie right next to the..."

"Field, yes, I know it," Jen said with disdain.

"Wonderful," Mrs. Nethers answered with almost a hint of humorous joy. Gross. "Here, take this. It's warm as I have just made it. Do eat up!" I took it and watched her basically prance back to her car. What the heck?

"Uh, Jen? Two questions," I told her. "One, where did you go? And two, do you think it's safe to eat this?" I set it on the small table next to the couch.

"I was so thrown off by the knock and from waking up on the couch, I... I don't know!" Jen said suddenly. "My best friend is missing. I'm thrown off. Sue me! And don't touch that casserole. I wouldn't put it past her at all to drug us. She was way too excited to give it to us and to encourage us to eat it. I'll call Dan." She still had her phone in her hand and sighed. "Crap! I forgot to charge it. Dang it."

There was another knock at the door. I walked over to it while Jen plugged in her phone. It was Dan.

"Morning, Tom, Jen," Dan greeted us. He'd clearly been up all night. "How are you guys doing?"

"I was just about to call you," Jen told him. "Mrs. Nethers came over just a little bit ago and brought this casserole. I wouldn't put it past her to drug it. Is there a way to test it?"

"Yeah, but unless you got on video her giving it to you, it wouldn't be allowed as evidence or anything," Dan clarified. "She'll have the best lawyers money can buy and get it dismissed before we have time to bring it up if she's part of the problem."

"Uh, I do, actually," Jen admitted. "I acted like I was looking at my texts and stuff while I stood next to Tom at the door. I got her telling us how she hadn't slept at all, how she was nearly excited to give it to us to eat, right up until she left the driveway."

"Ah, I taught you well, Ms. Davis," Dan teased her. She just rolled her eyes. "I'll go grab an evidence bag and take that casserole off your hands." Dan shook his head. "I could go for a good breakfast casserole right now."

"Why don't you try to find one that might not be drugged," Jen encouraged and led him to the door.

I walked directly back to Trin's room and used the bathroom to relieve myself, brush my teeth, and fix my hair. While I was in the room, I went ahead and changed my shirt and removed my shorts to throw on jeans instead.

As I walked back into the living room, Jen was just coming out of the hallway bathroom. "Think she'd mind if I borrowed some of her clothes?"

"I'm sure she'd be fine with it, but remember her wardrobe is limited," I reminded her.

"Got it," Jen called from the bedroom.

I walked to the kitchen to look for breakfast food. We were into the two final days in that house. I closed my eyes and lifted my head. "Please, please, please bring her back home safely," I whispered. "I don't want to live my life without her. Please don't tell me You put her in my life only to take her from me two weeks later."

I took out a few eggs, sausages, and cheese and began preparing them for bagel sandwiches. I was set up to make three in case Dan was still there. Otherwise, I'd eat the extra one.

When I brought out the three sandwiches, Jen hurried to take hers, and since Dan happened to still be there, he took his to go as he was headed to the station. He promised to keep us posted. We sat in silence for a good ten minutes.