Chapter 8
Nick rested his head against the wall, listening to the peaceful
breathing of his sleeping friends.
Pulling his sheet tighter, he ran his hand through his blonde hair. The
basement was cold. It was getting further into September and the temperatures
were dropping quickly.
Howie then woke up, stretching and yawning. The Latino then looked
over at his younger friend, who was wide-awake. “Hey Nick how are ya doin’?”
Nick just sighed, and nodded his head slowly. “We’re gonna die in
here aren’t we?”
Howie was startled by Nick’s question. “Nick…of course we aren’t
we’ll get out of this don’t think like that.”
“Sorry I’ve just got this awkward feeling in the pit of my stomach
that we aren’t.”
Before Howie could answer A.J. stirred and his eyes fluttered
open. Letting out a disappointed sigh, he greeted the others.
“Rob, Rob! Man you gotta check this out man! They found a lead the
police found a lead,” Craig yelled throwing a newspaper in front of his boss.
The newspaper headline was: “New Lead on Missing Backstreet Boys Case.” Rob
quickly skimmed the article, once he realized that the police knew what state
they were in he barked orders at Craig, not willing to take any chances. “Put
the curtains over the windows of the van, get the other fellas and tell ‘em to
pack anything we will need. Tell at least two of ‘em to meet me downstairs
where the boys are! I want the duck tape, and the ropes, quick!”
“Got it Rob,” he then ran out of the room in search of the rest of
the guys. Once he delivered the orders, everyone snapped into action, quickly
scurrying for the items they would need.
Rob sat at his chair with his cell at
his ear. He was making a deal with a friend. His friend, Jeff helping him find
some place completely abandoned they could stay at. Rob was relieved when Jeff
was able to give directions to an abandoned house, far from any town. No one
barely ever drove on the roads. It was completely secluded from all
civilization.
Brian and Kevin didn’t have any time
to comprehend what was going on. Their arms were being tied back tightly, and
duck tape was placed over their mouths. The five men were then roughly and
painfully pulled up into a standing position. The Backstreet Boys had no idea
where they were going. It was still dark out. Kevin guessed it was about 5 a.m.
Fear took place of curiosity as they took sight of the van. It was large and
ugly. The blue paint was chipped and curtains were covering the windows. Craig
and Jack opened the back up, revealing a trunk-like area. It was dirty and
gross. A spare tire and ropes were the only items there. Jack pulled them out
and threw them on the ground. All five of them were pushed in. Shoved against
the back frame of the back seat were Kevin and Nick. Howie and A.J. sat on the
left, next to Kevin. Brian was put next to Nick on the far right. They sat
cramped in the small area they were given. Jack then warned them, that if they
made a single noise they would be gagged with chloroform. The bags were shoved
into the seat in front of the Backstreet Boys. Jack Craig and Charlie sat in
the seats in front of that, with Rob and Chris in the two front seats.
Nick, Howie, A.J., Kevin, and Brian
found it hard to sleep. Too nervous and scared. Even though they were extremely
tired and exhausted, they just couldn’t sleep.
Brian rested his head against the
wall-like-seat and closed his eyes. Praying for sleep. Wanting to escape every
horrible thought of what might happen to them. Nick then rested his head on the
dirty floor, hoping just the same for sleep.
Hour after hour dragged by and finally
they were all sleeping soundly.
That night the captors, whom had
driven hours, finally reached their destination. The five young men were awoken
suddenly at the loud sound of the door being pulled opened. Rob smiled as he
took sight of the house they were staying in. It was run down, badly. In fact,
it looked as if it could fall apart at any given moment. The main thing was
that it was secluded from the world and was big. It was larger then the old one
they’d been staying at. Opening the door they found the house completely empty.
It was gross and dusty, and very old. The only furniture was a dusty broken
down table and an even worse looking chair. Using only flashlights they roamed
through every room of the house. Brian, Nick, Kevin, Howie, and A.J. were each
guided to the basement. The steps were steep and filled with cobwebs. The tape
was removed from each of their mouths and the ropes were undone. Jack, Craig,
Rob, Chris, and Charlie then left the basement. Shutting and locking the door
behind them. Rob then placed a chair in front of the door.
Nick was the first to speak. “Oh God, what are
we gonna do?”
“Nick, don’t panic, okay,” Kevin
gently spoke.
“We’ll figure it out tomorrow. Now
lets get some rest.”
Nick awoke early the next morning.
Surprised that his friends were already awake. “So, have you figured anything
out yet,” Nick asked eagerly, looking up at his four band mates hopefully.
“No, sorry Nick, but don’t worry we’ll
figure something out,” Brian spoke softly.
Nick frowned and rested his head
against the wall. “Why don’t we just break the door down?”
“We already thought of that. I am
pretty sure that they are sitting out there. They would hear us. We'd get
caught. Then punished. It’s not a risk we should take.”
“What other option do we have then
Kev? I mean it’s either take that risk and be punished or die down here.”
“Not necessarily Nick,” Kevin began. “Who’s to
say we won’t be found soon. I don’t want to be put in that kind of pain. You
know very well that they aren’t just going to kill us right away. That would
take all of the fun out of their sick little game. They’ll torture us Nick. I
don’t want to see you guys suffer through that. Please understand that.”
Nick slumped in defeat. Realizing that
Kevin made sense.
They then heard the door forcefully
open. They were ordered outside. It was cooler then it was the last time they
had to work. Early September was miserable. It was burning hot wherever they
were, but it was now further into September, and cooler.
Since there was barely any food they
were forced to fish at a nearby pond. Chris had only brought along two fishing
poles so only two at a time were allowed on the old canoe that was found in the
shed. It was cobweb and spider infested, but they had no choice. The canoe was
actually large enough to fit three in it. But a bucket was put in the middle
and A.J. and Brian were at the two ends. Howie, Kevin, and Nick sat in the mud
searching for bait. They were pushed out to the deepest section, which was
about fifteen feet deep. They were supposed to get at least two fish every
twenty minutes, or they would be severely punished. Brian and A.J. wasted no
time. A.J. felt a tug on his pole only minutes after he threw it in. He pulled,
but the fish was large so he stood up. Brian glanced over watching A.J. A.J.
then lost his balance on the canoe and fell in. The whole canoe flipped sending
Brian in as well. Brian and A.J. sunk to the bottom, not yet even realizing what
happened, to shocked. Brian was in search of A.J. as he struggled to pull
himself up. Nick, Howie, and Kevin were ready to jump in after then but were
held back by Craig, Jack and Chris.
“Those stupid idiots,” Rob spat
angrily. “I’ll make them pay for bein’ freaking morons and tippin’ the freakin’
boat!”
“Charlie, lets go teach those fools a
lesson!”
Charlie immediately understood Rob’s plan and
followed him out.
Nick, Howie, and Kevin, were quick to realize what
they were planning too. Letting out screams of no, struggling to pull out of
the firm grasps that held their arms back.
Brian gasped and spat out water as he reached
the surface. He then glanced over at A.J. thanking God that he was okay. Brian
didn’t even hear Rob coming towards him. It all happened fast as his head was
pushed back under the cold water. He struggled to free himself, but it was no
use. Rob was so much larger then him. Brian slowly lost control of everything
and his world went black. Rob yet still continued holding Brian down.
A.J. was in the same situation as
Brian. He was being held under. As much as he fought it was nearly impossible
to break free of Charlie. The water wasn’t clear and he strained, searching for
his friend. His lungs ached for oxygen, A.J. then gave up falling into
oblivion.
***
