Chapter 5 - Let's Talk!

One rainy evening.

After tucking baby James and baby Angel in their cribs, the couple gets cozy in the bed staring at each other's face... they know the kidnapping incident should be the next issue they will be discussing about so that they all can move on from the nightmare it has created in their lives.

"What happened on the night you disappeared, Cath?" John began questioning his wife.

Catherine took a deep breath, trying to recall everything about her kidnapping, it was painful but she knows that her husband won't let go of the issue easily even if she doesn't want to talk about it anymore. The only way to overcome the horrifying memories of her abduction is to reveal everything to her husband and then move on.

She began recounting her kidnapping incident...

"After I finished buying vegetables, herbs, and spices in the market I boarded a taxi cab going home. Then the driver parked the car near the gasoline station and told me that he will use the toilet for a moment, after he exited the taxi that's when I realized that he left behind...something... somewhere inside the taxi that had a strong odor chemical, the odor so awful I passed away in the backseat of the taxi in just a few seconds."

"The next thing I know, I was blindfolded, both hands and feet tied by a rope and then we travel in a vehicle and on a speedboat, then the next thing I know when I opened my eyes, I am already inside the house made of wood, with high gate and wall as high as 8 feet. Then there were about 5 guards stationed inside and outside the perimeter. I was no longer bound with the rope I can move freely inside the house from that moment on forward, I told them that I'm pregnant, then another woman arrived in the house, at first I thought she was also a captive like me but later on I realized she must have been hired to keep me company in my captivity. That woman was the one who returns baby Angel to you."

She paused for a moment...

"I plan to escape but guards were patrolling the area all the time, then I'm also pregnant, I'm scared I'm going to harm the baby during my escape. Even so, I still keep looking for an exit out of that place... or any opportunity to escape, just that the guys were carrying guns all the time, it's too dangerous to escape they might shoot me. I told myself that I will just have to wait a little bit...maybe you will give them ransom money and I can finally be freed."

"Months went by and I'm losing hope that I can escape that place, then I finally give birth to baby Angel, after two weeks, I woke up to discover that Dana and baby Angel were already gone and my location has been changed. I'm no longer in the wooden house they must have drugged me so that I have no idea where they brought me next, I'm held captive inside a bas.e.m.e.nt, then the leader of the guards told me that they will release me because the mastermind has changed of mind. They set me free on that night I finally returned here," she explained.

John's eyebrows furrowed. "They did not ask me for any ransom. I run missing person ads on TV, radio stations and newspapers and magazines, still no one can give me a clue of your whereabouts. You simply disappeared without a trace. Cath, if your kidnappers asked for ransom I would willingly obey their demands as long you can come back to my side, but nothing happens, then your personal belongings were returned to me one by one by a mysterious person. It turns out, that person has no idea where you are. Can you describe to me the guards' features? We can go to the police station and they will help sketch your kidnappers' profile as long you can describe them..."

Catherine shook her head. "I'm sorry hubby, I can't. They wear a black mask on their faces the whole time, the only thing I can see was their nose and eyes. But I am familiar with their voices, if I will hear them again I can positively identify them by just the sound of their voices."

John had predicted that the wooden house where Catherine was detained has been demolished already the moment the kidnappers changed location, they simply won't leave any traces of their crime. About the bas.e.m.e.nt, it will be hard to find that specific bas.e.m.e.nt all over the city, it's impossible to check all houses with bas.e.m.e.nts in the country, it would be a daunting task, he sighed heavily.

He looked at her wife's face sadly. "Sad to say we have no evidence, Cath. We don't know where to begin in finding the people who kidnap you. I'm just wondering why they kidnap you of all people and then released you after 11 months? What was their motive? It's something that was bothering me. Your kidnapping doesn't make any sense to me," he said. "Tell me...wife...did they hurt you physically?" he asked.

Catherine quickly shook her head. "No, I was never hurt physically, they just tied my hands and feet with a rope on the night they abducted me, that's all. That was also the same thing that bothers me, I was never hurt physically. What is the reason of my captivity?"

John released a deep sigh. "Looks like we will never know the answer unless we will catch the mastermind," he said.

He hugged his wife tightly. "I'm just thankful to God you are finally back in our home. I'd been emotionally and psychologically tortured the whole time you were out there and the amount of relief I feel after seeing you again was so huge. I'm so happy that God heard our prayers and brought you back safely in my arms. It's more than I can ask for," he added.

"Me too, I'm so happy that when the guard finally opened the door for me to enter I was stunned and I cried because of happiness, I never thought I could see you again after almost a year of captivity," she responded.

They were hugging each other feeling lucky that they overcome the biggest trial of their lives as a couple.

"I'm going to sleep now, hubby. I suddenly felt tired recalling my captivity, it's tiring and nerve-wracking, just thinking about it makes me want to cry again," she said misty-eyed.

John rubs his wife's back gently. "Okay, let's stop talking about your captivity from now on, let's go to sleep now."

Catherine sunk deeper into her husband's sweet embrace and closed her eyes preparing herself for a good sleep. "Sweet dreams, hubby," she murmured.

"Sleep well, wife," he responded. He planted a kiss on her forehead and closed his eyes as well.

A few minutes later, the couple had already fallen asleep, soundly.