23: SUDDEN DANGER
Brian tucked Sammy safely into bed with Rocky.
24: KIDNAPPED Brian felt the whoosh of air as the bullet whizzed past his arm. There was a thud as the bullet embedded itself in the wall. Only a few more inches to the right and it would have hit Brian. He had to fight to stop himself from crying out.
“Night, Sammy.”
“Night, daddy,” Sammy replied, sleepily.
Brian smiled slightly and turned the light off. Then he left the room, quietly shutting the door behind him.
Back downstairs, Brian flicked the T.V on, looking for something interesting to watch. He settled for a game show and put his feet up on the couch. Suddenly, the phone began to ring. Brian snatched it up quickly before it could disturb Sammy.
“Hello?” he asked.
“Hey Rok! How’s it going?”
“Hi AJ!” Brian replied, cheerfully. “I’m great! What about you?”
“I’m okay. Just thought I’d give you a quick call to see how Sammy was doing. Everything all right?”
“Yeah, he’s just gone to bed now. He’s doing brilliantly.”
“That’s great then! What about you? You coping okay? I mean, it’s gotta be different having a kid around the place.”
“Yeah, it’s a lot messier around here nowadays!”
“Can’t be much worse than usual!”
“Hey, I’m not that bad!”
“I know. But everything’s going okay?”
“Sure. Sammy’s really sweet and he helps me out around the house and everything.”
“Good, I’m glad it’s all working out for you. I know how much you wanted to keep him. What’s going to happen when we go back on tour?”
“I’m not sure yet,” Brian said. “”He’ll have to come with us and I’ll need to get him a tutor.”
“We’ll sort something out and work our schedule around it – Oh, I gotta go now. I’ve got a date with Ann. Catch ya later, Rok! Byeee!”
“Yeah, see ya AJ!”
Brian put the phone down and turned back to the T.V. What was he going to do when they went back on tour? Would Sammy cope all right with all of the travelling? If all else failed then Brian was sure that his mother would help him out. She adored Sammy.
The phone rang again. Brian sighed and picked it up. Sammy wouldn’t get any sleep at this rate.
“Hello?” he said.
No reply.
“Hello?”
There was still nothing. Brian tapped his fingers against the table, irritably.
“AJ, is that you?” he said. “Come on, Sammy’s trying to sleep!”
The phone suddenly went dead.
“Fine,” Brian said, replacing the receiver. He hated idiots who played prank calls.
He resettled himself back upon the couch and closed his eyes. The noise from the T.V began to be blanked out as his eyelids grew heavier…
Sammy was on tour with them. He was laughing and playing with a microphone. He looked so happy…
… He opened his eyes with a shock. He had fallen asleep, he realised. But something had woken him up.
He stared at the T.V. The screen was full of static. Programmes had finished. Definitely time for bed.
He used the remote to turn the T.V off and made his way to the stairs.
SHRING!
He froze. Something had fallen in the kitchen.
“Sammy?” he asked, wondering if the kid had come down for a drink. He crossed over to the kitchen. “Sammy? Tyke?”
He flicked the light on. There was a smashed glass upon the floor and the window of the back door was broken. He looked out of the window and saw Tyke lying on the path. He looked up at Brian and barked.
“Tyke?” he said in confusion.
Then something smacked him around the back of his head. He crumpled to the floor and moaned in pain. His vision blurred and he felt sick and dizzy. His head the corner of a sideboard and he felt the thin trickles of blood dribbling down his face.
A hand suddenly closed about his neck. Brian couldn’t help a slight cry of fear escape from his lips. What was going on?
“Where is he?” a rough voice demanded.
Shaking with terror, Brian focused on the huge man before him as his vision cleared. He was huge and his arms were as big as tree trunks. His black T-shirt could barely hold all of his muscles in.
Brian said nothing. He could feel his whole body trembling and there was an icy coldness of fear sat in his stomach.
“The little kid! Where is he?”
‘God, please help me! Don’t let them hurt Sammy!’ Brian begged, closing his eyes so that his attacker wouldn’t see the tears and terror within them.
“Tell me or I’ll throttle the life out of you, you pathetic bastard!” The force around Brian’s neck increased. He could barely breathe. He gave another slight cry.
“Quit it, Dustin!” another voice ordered. “He wants them both alive, remember? The little brat’s gotta be around here somewhere!”
The hand was withdrawn. Brian breathed in thankful gulps of air and stared in fear at the two men. The second of them was much smaller than Dustin but there was a look in his eyes that filled Brian with dread. These guys meant serious business.
“Go look upstairs, Carl,” Dustin said. “I’ll watch this one.”
Brian put his hand to his head and winced. Then he slowly stood up. He had to stop them. He had to stop them from hurting Sammy!
Dustin clapped a monstrous hand on his shoulder and shoved him roughly back down to the floor. “You stay there!” he shouted, kicking Brian’s legs.
“Do sovmething about that damn cut!” Carl said. “We don’t want him to bleed to death on us! I don’t want him getting a concussion either!”
“Chill! I didn’t hit him that hard!”
“I’m not taking any chances! You know how much we’re getting paid for this! Just get him sorted out! I’ll get the kid!”
Dustin muttered threats under his breath while he shoved a towel under a tap.
Brian, carefully, grabbed hold of a worktop and pulled himself quietly to his feet. Then he closed his trembling, sweaty hands about the sugar jar and smacked Dustin over the head with it.
The big man howled with rage and Brian stumbled out of the kitchen. He had to get Sammy. He had to call the police… Sammy would be so scared… He had to protect him…
The sound of a bullet being fired stopped him dead in his tracks.
“Stay exactly where you are you little fucker or next time I shoot, I won’t miss!” Dustin said.
Brian could feel his heart hammering in his chest and the trickles of sweat under his arms. Carl had told Dustin that they needed him in one piece so it was likely that Dustin wouldn’t go through with his threat. Was his theory worth testing?
“Brian! Daddy!” The scream came from upstairs. Sammy.
Gun or no gun, Brian had to help him. He felt his blood run cold at the terror in the scream. He made a run for the stairs but Dustin grabbed him by the neck and threw him roughly into a cabinet.
The glass door shattered and Brian moaned as he fell to the floor. Still, the thought of Sammy convinced him that he had to pick himself back up.
“Daddy!”
Brian could hear the sob in Sammy’s voice. He looked up to see Carl dragging and carrying the terrified five-year-old down the stairs in his pyjamas. Sammy tried to run to Brian but Carl kept a firm hold of him.
“He’s in enough trouble as it is! You don’t want to make it any worse for him!” Carl said.
“Let him go,” Brian begged. He pulled himself to his feet, ignoring the pain where the glass had ripped into his arm. He staggered a few steps toward Carl and Sammy but Dustin grabbed him.
Sammy had tears on his pale, little face. He was only a baby… Why wouldn’t they let him go?
Carl ignored him. “Put him in the van, Dustin and don’t make so much bloody noise! Do you want the whole god damn street waking up?”
Brian felt himself seized by Dustin as if he were nothing more than a rag doll. He heard the click as the front door was opened. He couldn’t believe what was happening to them. They’d been so happy. This was so unreal. It had to be some kind of awful nightmare. The fear shivering through his body convinced him that this was hard reality though.
“Shit, there’s a house over there with lights on! Hurry up, Dustin!”
Dustin dragged Brian out of the front door. Brian put up a brief struggle but Dustin was gripping him so hard that he could feel the bruises forming on his skin.
Outside, there was a white van waiting for them. Carl was trying to open the doors, but it was proving to be a difficult job as Sammy was struggling and crying in his arms. He kept trying to reach out towards Brian. Carl clapped a hand over the little boy’s mouth to prevent him from crying out anymore.
“Want me to shut him up?” Dustin asked.
“No! Don’t hurt him!” Brian pleaded.
“Definitely not. We were told not to hurt him, remember?” he said. “Dustin, you get the door.”
Dustin dropped Brian onto the floor.
“Try not to kill the Backstreet Boy.”
“I don’t like their music.”
“Neither do I, but that’s not the point.”
Brian felt ill. He had never been so frightened in his life before. He was terrified that they were going to hurt Sammy. He looked across at Sammy’s pale face. His eyes were filled with tears. He could see him trembling. He needed Brian’s help. He began to get to his feet.
“Don’t you even think about moving!” Carl warned. He pointed a gun at Brian. Sammy gave a cry of fear. “I was told to bring you alive but one or two holes won’t matter!”
Brian nodded. Carl was deadly serious and Brian knew it. But surely someone had heard something by now…
‘Help us, please,’ Brian begged silently. ‘At least get Sammy away from these creeps!’
There was a grunt as Dustin wrenched the van doors open. He grabbed Brian and threw him in.
“Daddy!” Sammy yelled, as Carl freed his mouth for a second.
“Nasty habit you’ve gotten into,” Carl commented. “I wouldn’t get too attached to him if I were you!”
Sammy’s looked even more fearful at this point. He stretched a hand out towards Brian.
“Please let him go! He’s only a baby! I’ll pay you! I’ll pay you whatever you want!” Brian said.
“Sorry, no can do.” Carl seized Sammy and handed him to Brian. “Here, take the little rat before I do something I regret!”
Brian took Sammy into his arms and hugged him close, thankful that he hadn’t been hurt. Carl slammed the doors shut and left them both in darkness. A few seconds later, Brian heard the two front doors slam. Then the engine roared into life. He heard the tyres squeal as they drove the van rapidly out of the street.
“What do they want?” Sammy asked, sobbing and trembling.
“I don’t know,” Brian said, kissing Sammy on the forehead. “You’ll be okay. I won’t let them hurt you,” he promised.
“Did they hurt you?” Sammy asked. “Your arm was bleeding.”
“It’s just a scratch,” Brian said. He had to fight to remain calm. He hoped that Sammy couldn’t hear the pounding of his heart. It felt as if it would burst at any second. He had to remain calm, even though it was almost impossible in these circumstances. If Sammy saw how frightened he truly was, then he would become even more scared.
He gently brushed Sammy’s fringe back from his forehead. “I’m sure the neighbours heard something,” he said.
“They have guns,” Sammy whispered, his voice trembling.
“They’re not going to hurt you. I won’t let them.”
Sammy clutched him tighter and gripped one of his hands. Brian kissed him again and promised himself that, no matter what, he would make sure Sammy got away safely.