Page 17

Four Weeks Before the Abduction

“N icole.”

The voice was far off and jovial, turning her name into a three-syllable word. Ni-coooo-ole.

“Come out, come out, wherever you are!”

Her eyes opened. She’d fallen asleep. Not sure if she was dreaming, she stood up and listened. The seat of her jeans was soaking wet and her upper thighs numb with cold. She’d been asleep long enough that the marijuana no longer had a hold on her.

“Oh, little Ni-cooo-ole. Where are you?” The voice was singsongy.

Nicole waited. The voice grew closer. Then a loud bang on the wooden door.

“You in there, Nicole? It’s time to come out!”

The door flung open. Ten people stood outside the shed with flashlights, lighting the night and highlighting their faces like a pack of medieval tribesmen. The first two people to enter the shed were girls Nicole had never seen before, who raced in and bear-hugged her.

“We love you, we love you, we love you,” one of them said.

“You fucking guys!” Nicole said.

“Freaky stuff, right?” the other girl said. “Did you piss your pants?” she asked, feeling Nicole’s wet jeans. “Yes!” The girl turned to the group. “She pissed herself!”

The crowd cheered. The girls led her from the shed and, once outside, the crowd cheered louder. A man walked from the ranks of the pack. His flashlight pinned under his chin so the light cast his face in an eerie glow. “My little Nicole. You made it.”

“Casey?” Nicole asked.

“Who else would save you?”

“You’re an asshole!”

This brought the group to hysterics. There were loud whistles and catcalls.

“What was with the picture of my cousin?”

“All part of the experience,” Casey said.

“And who was the guy? He grabbed my tits.”

This brought more laughter and hoots.

Casey smiled in the glow of the flashlight. “It wouldn’t be very convincing had we just asked you to jump in the car with us.” He shrugged. “Missing cousins, groping, a little ear moaning. It’s all part of the package you ordered.”

He moved closer and grabbed her in a giant hug, whispering in her ear. “You did great, sweet thing. Welcome to the Capture Club! I knew you’d love it.”