Kidnapped by a Killer (Edited Version)

Chapter 5

When Cliff opened his eyes, he expected to see his new ward sleeping peacefully beside him, but instead, he found an empty space and cold sheets. Immediately thrown into wakefulness, Cliff sat up and looked around. When his eyes landed on the open door, his stomach churned unpleasantly. "Zane! Where are you?!"

Cliff sprang from the bed and raced up to the main part of the house. He saw the back door was wide open, and he could hear the crashing and snapping of branches as someone, most likely Zane, ran through the trees away from the house. Just great, he grumbled.

Cliff grabbed his jacket and was just stepping outside when the doorbell rang. He stopped in his tracks. He wasn't expecting anyone. As annoying as it was to have to go search for Zane, Cliff wasn't worried about not finding him. His land was pretty big and Zane probably wouldn't be able to get to the edge anytime soon. Cliff could take a short house call.

Closing the back door and covering the basement entrance with the rug to avoid suspicion, Cliff went to the front of the house where the uninvited company was ringing the doorbell for the third time. "Hello? May I help you?" Cliff asked as he opened the door.

It was two men he didn't recognize. They both wore jackets with FBI insignia. "Are you Clifford Dine?" the taller of the two asked.

Cliff didn't like the government on his front porch. "I am. Who are you and what do you want?" he asked shortly.

"I'm agent Sam and this is agent James. We're with the FBI, and we have a warrant to search your house and property," the same agent spoke.

Cliff wanted to refuse them, but he knew a warrant meant business and it would be suspicious to try to stop them. Besides, he felt confident that they wouldn't find anything. Zane wasn't in the house, and even if he had been, the basement was hidden. "Very well. I don't know what you're looking for, but I'm sure you won't find it here," he said; he stepped aside to let them in.

They looked around the house for a while, opening drawers and cabinets as the riffled around in my personal belongings. They searched the master bedroom and the two guest rooms, the kitchen and the living room. Cliff grew anxious when they found the basement, but they only glanced around the small room briefly, asking why it was there.

"I have a friend who drops by every now and then when he needs a place to stay," Cliff said. "He's a junkie, so he stays down there to keep from troubling me when he lights up."

The two agents didn't give much indication of whether or not they believed him.

When they finished with the house, they inspected the perimeter. They noted where the grass was bent from someone stepping on it, but Cliff inserted a comment about having just returned from his morning walk.

As they walked towards the front of the house, Cliff asked, "Are you satisfied?"

"Well, we didn't exactly find what we wanted, but we'll be back later in the week for some follow-up questions," agent Sam said as the two of them stepped out. "Goodbye, Mr. Dine."

Cliff wished them a safe return drive and shut the door with a sigh. Then he glanced out the window. The agents had spent so much of the day looking around, it was getting dark already. It would be best to wait until the morning to find Zane. He was a smart kid, no doubt he had already found some shelter for the night. Even though he didn't have food and was probably cold, there wasn't any real danger to him out there. Well, that is unless you count the...

*******

Dogs.

I had never been fond of the beasts, but now I straight up hated them. When the man hadn't come looking for me, I had gone out to see if I could find something to drink. While I was at a small stream I had found, three huge dogs found me. They were now chasing me as I blindly tried to find my way back to the cabin in the darkening trees, barking loudly at my heels. They looked terrifying with their glowing eyes and long, sharp, yellow teeth. I could hear them snapping at my ankles viciously as I ran, eager for a bite.