Where I was

Involved

         Charlie sat at the dinner table, looking around at his family. An unspoken question lingered on his lips as he snuck a glance at his phone. It was getting late, and he still hadn't received a text from Tiana. He sighed and slipped it back into his pocket. "When is Bill going to be home?" 

          As soon as the question was asked, the door opened and Bill walked in, looking exhausted. He ruffled Charlie's hair ignoring his strangled protests. "Did you miss me little bro? Sorry I'm late. Had something come up before I could get out of there and it was pretty serious." He sat down next to Charlie. 

           Charlie's mother, Molly, bustled into the dining room, holding plates of her homecooked meals, which never failed to taste like heaven turned into food. "Lovely to see you Bill, darling. Just in time for supper." She kissed his head, having already subjected the rest of the family when they had gotten home. "Everything go alright today? You're home a bit later than usual."

            Bill sighed slightly. "I will tell you later mum. Something came up. A big thing." He spared a quick glance towards Charlie. "Shall we eat? It smells delicious and I don't know about the rest of you but I'm absolutely famished." 

             Charlie spared a look at Bill after a few minutes. He noticed his face was tense, his eyes staring off as if lost in thought. Making a mental note to ask about what was going on later, Charlie finished his dinner and stood to take care of his plate. "Thank you for dinner mum. I'm gonna go wash up before bed."

              Molly gave a smile to her second oldest son. "Thank you for taking care of your plate, dear. Such a good boy." 

               Charlie turned a shade of red, almost bright enough to rival his hair. He turned and ran up the stairs before his brothers could start teasing him. He quickly showered and changed, knowing the only way he would get hot water was if he beat them all to it. Drying his hair, his mind wandered to Tiana. He wondered why she hadn't texted him. He had thought she liked him, but maybe he was mistaken. Maybe he was just helpful to her and that was it. He hung up his towel and walked dejectedly to his room that he shared with Bill. Climbing in bed, he was struck with the thought that he still had yet to figure out what was going on with Bill today. He resolved to stay awake until Bill came in, and then question him.

              About 10 minutes later, Bill was heard telling Molly he was exhausted and was going to go to bed. He walked into the room, and turned to Charlie's bed. "Hey, Charlie. You awake? We need to talk."

              Charlie shot up. "I was actually waiting up for you. What's going on Bill? I've never seen you act this way. What happened today?"

               Bill looked away slightly. He wasn't aware it was that noticeable that something was bothering him. "Um, well... you see... A young girl was kidnapped today. She went to your school. She had just moved to the area."

                A chill rose up Charlie's spine. "What is her name?" He silently prayed, not that he was religious, but he was terrified. 

                 "Her name was Tiana. Tiana Waterman." 

                  Darkness swam in front of Charlie's vision. "I knew her... I met her today... I warned her not to walk home... I told her and she didn't listen... this is all my fault. I should have taken her home." 

                   "Charlie, then we may have lost you too. We are gonna need all the help we can get to find her alive. This person who takes them all... we don't know where they are. We've been looking for years. This person always evades us."

                    A sudden thought hit Charlie. "You don't think.. he could be involved in the search parties? That way he's a step ahead...?" 

                     Bill sat up straighter. "We actually... never thought of that. It may be an idea worth looking into. We should be able to access the search party files that have the names of the volunteers, and begin there. It's a good start. We will find this one. I'm not letting another one get hurt because we can't find this bastard. This girl is getting saved. I swear it." After finishing his small speech, he slumped back against the bed. "Only problem is I'm not sure how to find her... We've never found them before..." 

                       Charlie gave a sly grin. "However, none of the other girls were fighters. Tiana will do what it takes to survive, until she can escape. That much I know. She has a chance." Settling into his bed, the reality struck him. His friend, the only person he had liked in that entire school, was kidnapped. He grimaced. "Bill, I'm helping you find this girl. I won't rest right until she's found." 

                        Bill smiled a weary smile over towards Charlie, ruffling his hair. "Good little bro, because we are going to need all the help we can get. We will find her... I promise."

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Well damn! Been forever, I know. Been super busy and had quite a rough time for a while! Had surgery last week, and while I'm bedridden I was suddenly inspired. Getting surgery on the other foot next month. But yeah, I'm still alive! I hope you enjoy the update. As always, comments are appreciated.