Gone.

Chapter Two - Police and Phonecalls

 Recap;

“Hello? Charlie? Did you give her the phone?” A male voice rang from the other side, deep and anxious.

“Um,” I cleared my throat. The voice stopped instantly. “Hi?”

A deep sigh sounded, then silence. I pulled the phone away from my ear, looking at the black screen uncertainly. Who was I talking to? Were they still there?

“Um, hello? You still there?”

“Yes,” the man sighed again. “I’m here. You don’t know how long I’ve been looking for you, Candice. My gosh, you have no idea.”

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I pulled the phone away and stared at it, my hands shaking slightly.

“Candice? Love, you don’t need to be afraid,” the voice said through the speaker. I blinked a few times, my eyes frozen on the sleek black screen.

“Talk to him,” Charlie instructed softly. I looked up to see her green eyes soft and sympathetic. She nodded her head toward the phone and I slowly brought it back up to my ear.

“I – um. Who is this?” I asked, almost proud as my voice came out somewhat clear. Charlie smiled encouragingly.

“Zavier. My name’s Zavier, Love.”

“Oh,” was all I could say. I felt like telling him to shove the nickname ‘Love’ up his butt and then demanding he had his friends take me back home, but that wouldn’t get me anywhere, except maybe the boot.

“Did Charlie or Jay tell you about me?” The man asked. I felt my stomach plummet as I realised he couldn’t be a small man, not with the baritone of a voice he had.

“Um, sort of,” I replied uncertainly. “You’re the one who got them to kidnap me.”

“Not kidnap, Love,” the man reprimanded. “I’m merely taking you home.”

“Home?” My voice broke slightly. I cleared my throat, briefly looking up and making eye contact with Charlie. Neither of us smiled – she could see my fear, and I wasn’t hiding it.

“Yes. Your home is with me. My arms are where you belong.”

I couldn’t help it - my eyebrows raised in disbelief, my gaze breaking away from Charlie's. The absurdity of this situation was starting to get to me. “Are you kidding me? Is this some sort of joke - am I being filmed or something, for one of those prank shows?”

The man chuckled, a deep, warm sound. “No, my love, this isn’t a joke. I’ve known since I was eleven that you were mine, it was just a matter of finding you.”

“That I was yours?” I repeated, feeling my face flush in irritation and embarrassment. “Look, I’m sorry to tell you this, but I don’t belong to anyone. I’ve never met you before, I don’t know you and when the police find me, I won’t hesitate to put you in jail.”

The man laughed again, and I felt my grip tighten on the phone, anger washing over me.

“The police aren’t going to find you. You don’t know who you’re dealing with, Love. There’s no way you can escape.”

“My dad will have already called the cops, he'd be home by now. I had a friend coming over too, he would've noticed my disappearance, and someone would’ve found Max as well – I’d never just leave him alone. They’re going to find me, and you’ll be in so much trouble once they do,” I snapped. I sounded so certain, but the confidence in his words was really tying knots of anxiety in my stomach.