Seeking Safety (16 page)

"I wanted to," responds Barry, his heart
breaking.

"Well, I guess we'll go now. Come say goodbye
to Eric. He thinks a lot of you."

"I love Eric too. I'm going to miss both of
you," says Barry sadly.

As they walk back into the house together,
Barry's heart is breaking. He knows he can't make her stay, and he
doesn't have any words to convince her to stay. What is that old
saying? 'If you love someone, set them free, if they come back to
you they will be yours forever.' He can only hope she will come
back.

Barry gives Eric a big hug and says with
tears in his eyes, "I love you little man. Come back and visit, all
right?"

Tears in his eyes, Eric replies, "I love you
too Barry. I'll come back every chance I get, I promise."

Barry stands in the drive and watches the
limousine drive away with tears streaming down his face. He's not
sure he will ever be happy again.

******

Eric's heart is breaking. He doesn't want to
leave the ranch. He doesn't want to leave Barry. He loves Barry and
wants to live with him forever. He wants Barry to be his Dad. Why
is his mother being so stubborn? What can he do to change her mind?
He's going to miss Dani too. Maybe his Papa will at least let him
call Barry and Dani from Seattle sometimes. He will have to ask
him.

******

As the limousine drives through the main gate
of the Rock Springs Ranch, I am overcome with the feeling that I
have just made the biggest mistake of my life. I saw the look of
deep sadness in Barry's eyes and my heart clenched. The last thing
in the world I want to do is hurt him. I owe him my life. What if
it is true that he thinks I am special? What if I just walked away
from the one man in the world that is the love of my life? I shake
my head in denial. No, Barry Farrady is so handsome and so rich he
can have any woman in the world that he desires. I can't compete
with all of the beautiful starlets he is around all of the time.
They are part of his movie star world, I'm not. This is for the
best, for me and especially for Eric.

The Brentwoods settle into a routine in
Seattle. Mark returns to his job at Microsoft and Patricia and I
spend hours refurbishing my bedroom and creating a new one for
Eric. I allow Eric to pick out his bedspread and the color for his
walls. After working so hard to paint his walls with his chosen
color, I am shocked when I walk into his bedroom one evening and
finds huge posters of Barry Farrady covering his walls. The pain in
my heart takes my breath away when I see his smiling face staring
back at me. I demand,

"Eric, where did you get these posters? Take
them down this instant!"

Rebelliously Eric yells, "No, I won't! Barry
is my hero! You said I could decorate my room any way I want and
this is what I want. Just because you don't like him anymore,
doesn't mean I don't!"

I am completely shocked by his attitude. Eric
has never talked back to me and I don't understand why he would
start now. I wisely decide to let the matter slide for now. After a
few weeks I will approach the subject again. I'll just have to make
a point of staying out of Eric's room. I can't bear to look at
Barry's smiling face. It hurts too much.

Mark and Patrician Brentwood, sitting at the
kitchen table hear the confrontation between mother and son. Mark
looks at Patricia and shakes his head. Patricia nods in agreement.
Both of them think Melanie is missing Barry Farrady much more than
she will admit.

******

Benjamin Roland leans back in his expensive
leather chair and stares out the corner windows of his law office
overlooking Puget Sound. He throws the newspaper he was reading to
the floor. Well, damn, that militia group that his former client,
Darren Calloway founded has been decimated by the government. He
had been counting on them to find and secure Eric Calloway for
him.

Since he wrote Darren Calloway's will he
knows the land in Idaho and all of those glorious millions now
belong to his nine year old son. He has always wanted a son and
adopting one that is heir to millions of dollars is just what he
needs to pay off his gambling debts. He had planned to let that
idiot Steve Simpson get the boy back and then he was going to fake
the adoption to Simpson and claim the boy as his own. Obviously,
the bumbling idiot failed.

Now he is going to have to find and secure
the boy himself. Well, it shouldn't be a problem. He's got enough
connections to the seedier side of life to get it done without
dirtying his hands.

It takes his private investigator almost five
weeks to locate Melanie Brentwood at the residence of her parents
in Seattle. Now all he has to do is get some of the other militia
guys to kidnap them for him. He will promise them the title to the
land in Idaho free and clear. He doesn't care anything about it
anyway. That ought to be tempting enough to get them to
cooperate.

******

Mark Brentwood is awakened around midnight by
the blood curdling scream coming from his daughter's bedroom.
Jumping out of bed he steps out into the hall and sees Melanie
being dragged toward the back door by an armed man. He starts to
run after them when he is struck in the head from behind and falls
to the floor. Patricia Brentwood drops to the floor next to her
husband sobbing.

The next time Mark wakes he feels the
movement of the vehicle before he opens his eyes. His head is
pounding and his vision is blurred. He is lying in the back of what
looks like an armored truck. Patricia is sitting beside him crying.
Melanie and Eric are sitting against the wall of the truck staring
at him. They are all still dressed in their pajamas with no shoes.
He mumbles, "Where are we?"

I reply dejectedly, "We have been kidnapped
by five members of the militia. I imagine they are taking us back
to Idaho so Eric can sign the deed to the compound."

"How long have I been out? What time is it?"
Mark asks trying to get his bearings.

Patricia, thankful that Mark is alive and
finally awake, answers, "It should be nearly dawn. We have been
driving for several hours."

He slowly sits up and feels the knot on the
back of his head. "Damn! What did they hit me with, a sledge
hammer?"

Patricia, her heart pounding with fear, says,
"It was a really big gun of some kind. I was so scared you were
dead. Oh Mark, what are we going to do?"

Eric calmly says, "Barry will come and save
us. I know him and Scoot and the other guys will come. We just have
to be patient."

I respond, "Oh Baby, Barry doesn't have any
way of knowing we're in trouble. I know he would come if he did,
but he doesn't know."

Eric confidently says, "He'll come. I know he
will."

"Can we do anything to get away?" asks
Mark.

"Dad, these men will not hesitate to kill us.
The best thing we can do is be patient and hope someone comes to
help us. We just need to concentrate on surviving, not escaping," I
answer drawing on my years of experience in dealing with the
members of the militia.

I am not afraid. I am mad because Eric and I
were supposed to be safe. Scoot said the FBI and ATF arrested all
of the members of Darren's group, so who are these men? I don't
remember ever seeing any of them at the compound in Idaho. I need
to ask Eric. He is better at remembering faces.

"Eric, do you remember any of these men from
the compound in Idaho?"

Eric shakes his head, "No, I don't think so.
They could have been at the compound when I was younger, but they
haven't been around in the last few years. I am sure of that."

Well, that's certainly confusing. If they
weren't at the compound, then who are they? I am also worried. What
is going to happen to all of us once Eric signs the deed? What if
they think Eric has already received that money Scoot said he will
inherit? Do we even have a small chance of surviving after he signs
the deed and they find out Eric doesn't have the money yet?
Oh God, please help us! Barry, if you care,
please hear me! We are in trouble! Please help us!

******

Six weeks have passed since Melanie and Eric
left the ranch and Barry is going stir crazy. He called his agent
yesterday and is expecting some scripts for his review to be
delivered this afternoon. Maybe if he joins the rat race that is
the movie business again for a little while it will help him to
deal with the overwhelming sadness he has been feeling since they
left. His agent is ecstatic that he is considering making another
movie. Barry shakes his head. These Hollywood types, they just
don't ever give up.

Not too long after Melanie left, Scoot and
the other members of the Drake Security team were called out of
state for a new assignment. He is not expecting them back for
several more weeks. The guys are now living and have their office
over the barn here on the Rock Springs Ranch which will be great
when they are here. Barry is frustrated because he can't even go
with them on assignment because he is too recognizable. Damn the
Paparazzi!

His Mom and Bob Kenner's relationship is in
full bloom. Barry expects wedding bells in the not too distant
future. He is thrilled for his Mom. She has been alone far too long
and deserves the happiness she has found with Bob. This big house
on the ranch will sure be lonesome if they decide to live at the
Rocking J Ranch.

******

When the armored truck rolls to a stop my
heart skips a beat.
Oh God, what is going to
happen to us? Will we survive long enough for someone to find us or
to even realize we have been kidnapped? Please God, help
us!

M
ark
Brentwood's heart is pounding heavily. He feels responsible for the
predicament his family is in. What can he do to get them all out
safely? Melanie knows these people much better than he does. She is
probably right when she told him to be patient and pray that
someone will come. But what if no one comes? What if these men kill
his whole family?
Oh God, please, help
us!

Eric is sitting calmly at his mother's side.
He knows in his heart that Barry and the other guys will come. They
just have to be patient. Please Barry, help us!

The men that took them from their home in
Seattle now force them out of the truck and into a mine shaft at
gun point. Then they tie their hands and feet. It is much colder
here in the mountains than it was in Seattle and none of them have
on clothes. Their thin pajamas are no protection against the cold
so they huddle as close together as they can against the wall of
the mine.

Two other men are inside the mine. Eric
remembers them from when they lived at the compound. What are their
names? Winters and Diggs, yeah that's it. They were always together
at the compound. He wonders why they are here and why they are tied
up.

Eric remembers this mine from when they were
at the compound too. He and the other boys used to play in here. He
also remembers telling Barry about it. Please Barry, help us!

******

After reviewing the scripts sent to him by
his agent Barry has decided on one that will take him to Cozumel,
Mexico. He thinks Mexico should be a good place to spend the
winter. He'll call his agent tomorrow.

He is sitting at the desk in his study
reading the script and making notes in the margins when his cell
phone rings. He checks the caller ID and sees Scoot's name. His
heart rate immediately speeds up.

"Farrady" he answers.

"Farrie, it's Scoot. We may have a
problem."

"What's up Scoot?" asks Barry, his heart
pounding with dread.

"You know the two undercover agents that
escaped the compound in Idaho, they have disappeared. Their
handlers haven't heard from them in several days. When was the last
time you talked to Melanie?"

"I haven't talked to her at all since she
left the ranch. I figured she needed the time to reconnect with her
family. Are you saying you think Melanie and Eric may be in
danger?" asks Barry, fear flowing through his veins.

"I don't know. I think it's possible. See if
you can get in touch with her then call me back. Don't say anything
to alarm her yet. I'll see what I can find out from this end. We'll
compare notes after you talk to her," replies Scoot.

Barry's heart is pounding with dread and he
breaks into a cold sweat. What if Melanie is in danger? He dials
the number for her parent's home in Seattle. The phone rings and
rings, no answer. He tries the cell phone number he had gotten for
her when she was at the ranch. Again, no one answers. He tries Mark
Brentwood's cell phone. No answer on it either. Oh, God, what if
they have already gotten to them? He dials Scoot's number.

"Scoot here,"

"No answer. I tried the house, Melanie's cell
and Mark Brentwood's cell. Do you think something might have
already happened?" Barry asks trying his best to remain calm. His
heart is pounding with fear.

"I don't know. I have a contact in Seattle.
I'll have him go by and check on the house. I'll call you back,"
says Scoot.

Barry hates this! He hates not being able to
be part of the team. This movie star business is for the damn
birds! Maybe he can have plastic surgery or something to alter his
looks and maybe even stage his death. He's going to have to
seriously think about it. One thing is for sure, he's not going to
Mexico to film any damn movie! He flings the script to the floor
and begins pacing back and forth across the study.

Two hours pass before Scoot calls back, "The
news isn't good Farrie, my guy found signs of a struggle. At least
he didn't find any bodies at the house. I have the guys checking
all of the militia websites now looking for clues. I'll call you as
soon as I know anything."