Page 29 of The Girl Who Was Taken

“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. Thefirst 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.”

CHAPTER 15

July 2016

Three Weeks Before the Abduction

Nicole lay on a beach towel on the bow of Rachel’s ArrowCat. They had anchored an hour earlier and now allowed their bikinied bodies to absorb the warm afternoon sun while other boats slowly settled around them. Not far away was Steamboat Eddie’s, a bar that sat on a very small island in the middle of the bay and served fried food and beer. Most summer days saw boats anchored and floating around the island, music blaring from the live band that played on the patio of Steamboat Eddie’s.

“So where were you the other night?” Jessica asked.

Nicole lay on her back with her arms at her sides, sunglasses covering her closed eyes.

“Busy.”

“With Mystery Man?”

“Maybe.”

“So what do you guys do? Does he, like, take you to dinner?”

“He’s not that cliché,” Nicole said.

Jessica and Rachel waited.

“We hang out.” Nicole didn’t consider telling her friends about her adventure the other night. Not only would they not understand the club, but they’d likely judge her as unstable or demented.

“God,” Jessica said. “What’s the big secret?”

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