Actions

Work Header

Rating:
Archive Warning:
Category:
Fandom:
Relationship:
Characters:
Additional Tags:
Language:
English
Collections:
Peja's Wonderful World of Makebelieve Import
Stats:
Published:
2020-11-04
Words:
6,954
Chapters:
1/1
Comments:
1
Kudos:
8
Bookmarks:
1
Hits:
1,492

Kidnapped

Summary:

Gabe is kidnapped, and his father asks Judson and Mac to find him.

Work Text:

Kidnapped
By Perpetual Motion

"Come on, Gabe!" Tyler slung an arm around Gabe's shoulders. "You're going to abandon me in a couple of days. The least you could do is hit one more club with me."

Gabe laughed. "Nice try, man, but I can't. I promised my dad I'd be in early tonight. He wants to talk."

"How'd he take the relationship news?"

"Silently."

Tyler grimaced. "That's not good. Your dad only does silent when he's extra pissed."

"I know, which is why I need to get to the house to talk to him. I want to clear the air before I leave."

"All right; go be the good son. Call me before you sail off again."

"I will." Gabe gave Tyler a quick hug. "Be careful."

"You, too. Keep your dad way from pointy objects."

"I'll try. See you later."

"See you."

Gabe watched Tyler walk into the next club on the strip and smiled a little as he turned on his heel to walk back to the nearest bus stop. It'd been a good night. He hadn't seen Tyler in a long time, and they'd fallen back into their old camaraderie without any trouble. He'd have to remember the little basement club they'd been to for his next visit. The clientele was diverse enough he and Judson could go without being looked at funny.

A large, burly man suddenly stepped up beside Gabe. "Gabriel Patterson?"

"Who's asking?" Something hard was pressed into Gabe's side. He was nearly certain it was a gun. ~Fuck.~ "What do you want?"

"Just you."

"I'm taken." Gabe threw a quick punch to the guy's throat. His aim was good, and the guy fell to the ground gasping. Gabe reached for his cell, but someone clubbed him on the back of the head before he could get it out of his pocket.

*

Judson was rudely awakened by his cell phone. He reached for it and squinted at the clock. 2:17 AM. He had a sudden suspicion his day was going to suck. "What's wrong?"

"Is this Judson Cross?"

~No, it's someone *else* answering his phone in the middle of the night.~ "Yeah. Who the hell is this?"

"This is Senator Patterson."

~Gabe.~ Judson was suddenly wide awake. "What's wrong, Senator?"

"Gabriel never came home tonight. I was wondering if he was?with you."

"No, he's not. I haven't seen him since yesterday afternoon when he left to see you."

"Are you sure he's not somewhere on your ship?"

"Senator, if he were here, he'd be lying right next to me." Judson waited out the long pause that followed.

"If he does stumble in, would you call me?"

"Certainly, Senator. I'd appreciate a call if he shows up there."

Another long pause. "Certainly."

Judson closed his phone, kicked off the covers, and walked to Mac's room. He opened the door and flipped on the light. "Mac."

She pulled a pillow over his face and groaned. "What the *fuck*?"

"Get up. Gabe's missing."

"What?" Mac pulled the pillow off her face and rolled over to look at Judson.

"Gabe's missing."

"Since when?"

"I don't know, but his father just called looking for him."

"Are you sure he's not just out with some friends or something?"

Judson shook his head. "He was supposed to have the talk with his dad about-"

"How he's a full-grown adult and can make all his own sleeping arrangements?"

"Something like that. He wouldn't miss that talk."

Mac stood up from the bed and reached for a pair of jeans. "I know. Go make some coffee."

Judson's cell rang again. "Gabe?"

"No, this is Senator Patterson again. If it's not to much of an inconvenience, I'd like you to come to the house. I just received a note."

"I'll be there in fifteen minutes."

"I'll have coffee waiting. Goodbye."

Judson shut his phone again. Mac was already pulling on her shoes. "Go warm up the car. The Senator's just received what I'm betting is a ransom note. I'll meet you up top after I throw on some clothes." Mac nodded and headed for top deck. Judson went back to his quarters, stripped out of his pajama bottoms, and pulled on jeans, a T-shirt, a sweater, shoes, and socks. He took half a moment to check the room for anything else he needed. His ring from Gabe was on the nightstand. He grabbed it and his coat and headed for the top deck. Mac was scraping ice from the windshield.

"The next time we take a few days off in Vermont, it better be summer."

Judson managed a grin as he put his ring on and pulled his gloves and hat out of his pockets. "I'll try to remember." He got in the Rover and waited for Mac to finish clearing the windshield. He was trying to keep his mind in a positive place, thinking more positive thoughts than the possibility of finding Gabe seriously injured if he had, indeed, been kidnapped.

Gabe, smiling on the deck and teasing Mac as they sunbathed. Sitting on the floor by the coffee table dismantling something just to see all the tiny parts. Curling against Judson in bed and murmuring happily when Judson pulled him closer. Diving into the water after his ring slipped off and refusing to finish searching until he found it.

Mac got into the Rover and buckled in. She touched Judson's arm. "Think positive."

"I am." Judson smiled softly. "Remember when his ring slipped off his finger and into the water?"

"He jumped straight off the dock and nothing either of us could say would get him out of the water until he found it." Mac put the Rover into drive. "Well find him, Judson. If anyone's as stubborn as Gabe, it's the two of us."

"Yeah."

Mac bit her lip to hold back more reassurance. She needed to save up, just in case something drastic happened. ~It *won't*.~ It didn't sound very convincing in her head, so she concentrated on driving to the Patterson estate. It was a huge piece of property with a barn, a lake, a handful of horses, a tennis court, and a huge, pillared house that came
complete with a fully starched staff to cater to every whim.

The three of them had been there the first day in dock. It had been Gabe's first venture home since he and Judson had become involved. It had been an?interesting visit?

?"You mean you haven't even *told* your father about us?" Judson looked halfway between shocked and upset.

"It's not something I wanted to say on the phone or send in an e-mail. It's to important for that." Gabe reached for Judson's hand.

Mac rolled her eyes. "Okay, nauseated here."

"Then, you're going to want to close your eyes." Judson grinned mischievously at Mac and kissed Gabe thoroughly.

"And now, I'm oddly aroused."

"Don't say aroused." Gabe reached for the door handle. "Come on, let's go in." He got out of the Rover, waited for Mac and Judson, reached for Judson's hand again, and led the way up the walk. He let them in the front entryway and paused for a moment.

Judson squeezed his hand. "You okay?"

"Just?thinking."

Mac stepped up to Gabe's free side and patted him on the back. "Deep breath, then give us a tour of the dream mansion."

Gabe managed a nearly-amused chuckled. "Okay." He took the deep breath. "We'll find the master of the house first."

They walked through an understated by extravagant parlor and into a very masculine office. The man behind the desk had the same thin, tall frame and jaw as Gabe. He looked up in surprise at the three of them until something seemed to click and he smiled at Gabe.

"Gabriel! I wasn't expecting you so early!" He stood and walked around the desk.

"Hi, Dad." Gabe hugged him. "Are we interrupting?"

"No, of course not."

"This is Mackenzie Previn and Judson Cross."

"I've heard a lot about you. I'm Kenneth Patterson." He held out a hand.

Judson shook it. "It's a pleasure, Senator."

"Just call me, Ken, please." Ken shook Mac's hand. "You are a very attractive woman."

She smiled. "Thank you."

"Don't let her fool you, Dad. She's a black belt."

"And a weapons expert," Judson added.

"And very modest about the whole thing, I'm sure." Ken gave Mac a smile, and then looked back to Gabe. "Let me look at you."

"Not much new to see." Gabe held out his arms.

"No piercings, tattoos, or other body adjustments I should know about?"

"Nope."

Ken noticed the ring on Gabe's left hand. He raised his eyebrows. "Is that a wedding band?"

"Kind of." Gabe held his hand up so his father could inspect the ring. It was a plain gold band with a line of emeralds dotting the top edge and a line of topaz dotting the bottom edge. "The emeralds are my birthstone."

"And the topaz?"

"It's," there was a minute pause for Gabe to glance over and get the nod from Judson. "It's Judson's."

There was a sudden, stark silence?

?Kenneth Patterson's welcome was less than warm the second time around. He nodded to Mackenzie and couldn't seem to get his eyes above Judson's left hand. "Have a seat."

Neither sat. Judson put his hands in his pockets. "May we see the note, Mr. Patterson?"

"Of course." He walked over to the desk, picked up a piece of paper, and held it out to Mac and Judson. It was a plain piece of notebook paper with the note written in cheap black ink.

We have Gabriel. If you want him back alive, it was cost you $435 million. We will be in touch.

Judson whistled under his breath. "435 million."

"It's the entirely of Gabriel's trust fund."

Mac had to keep her jaw from dropping. She knew Gabe had money, but that was a *lot* of money. She glanced at Judson. "Did you know he's worth this much?"

"I never asked." Judson looked up at Mr. Patterson. "Have you called the police?"

"No. The media would be swarming within hours. It'd just cause problems." Patterson walked behind his desk. "I want to hire you to find Gabriel."

"Excuse me?"

"You make your living finding things, Mr. Cross."

"Operative word being *things*, Senator. You need to call the police."

"I can't."

Mac's eyes narrowed. She crossed her arms. "You won't. If the media finds out your son is missing, they'll start looking around, and they'll find Judson, and then your reelection campaign will go to shit when the ultra-conservatives who endorse you run screaming." She made a face. "You'd rather keep your seat in Senate than do everything possible to find your son."

"That's not true!" Patterson's face flushed with anger. "The media frenzy will happen if I call the police, which will make it twice as hard to find Gabriel because everyone and their sister will be calling with empty tips in hopes of collecting reward money."

"And if a couple of people go wandering around town trying to track down a wayward friend, it's not a big deal."

"Exactly."

Judson glanced at Mac. She nodded. "I'll only give you 24 hours. If we haven't found him by then, you call the police."

Patterson clenched his jaw but nodded. "Fine."

(2)

Judson glanced at Mac. She nodded. "I'll only give you 24 hours. If we haven't found him by then, you call the police."

Patterson clenched his jaw but nodded. "Fine."

Judson pulled a small notebook and a pen from one of his coat pockets. He handed them to Patterson. "Write your number down. Where did Gabe go tonight?"

"Out with a friend of his, Tyler Mason. He lives across town."

"Write down Tyler's full address."

"And get someone in here with coffee." Mac shrugged at the look Judson threw her. "I was promised coffee."

*

Gabe came to in shades of gray. His head was throbbing just behind his left eye, and he groaned softly as the world went from dusk-gray to pearl-gray. "Judson?" His voice was rough, and his throat was dry. He coughed twice and cursed under his breath when pain went through his head. It did make his vision clear, and he mentally rolled his eyes at the
irony. ~What's a little pain when I can see clearly?~

"Who's Judson?"

Suddenly, he remembered what had happened. He'd been headed back to the house to talk with his dad, and some guy had come out with a gun. Gabe had hit him, and then, some guy had hit Gabe. That would explain the pain in his head. He must have gotten hit on his left temple. "Who are you?"

The guy glaring down at Gabe was large, with flabby arms and a broken tooth. He had a shotgun in his left hand, letting it hang and swing as he moved. "Who are you?"

"You kidnapped me. Shouldn't you know?" Gabe held back a wince as the guy jabbed him in the ribs with the front of the shotgun. "Careful where you point that thing. It could go off."

"So could I." When he grinned, he looked maniacal. "Who's Judson?"

~My boyfriend. And he's going to kick your ass.~ "My dog." ~Sorry, Judson.~

"You always call your dog's name when you wake up?"

"I'm special that way."

The guy's grin widened. "Yeah, you are. You're also worth a lot of money."

"So everyone keeps telling me." Gabe gave a small tug to the restraints that tied his hands behind his back to the chair he was sitting in. He glanced down, ignoring the pain in his head, and held back a string of very colorful words when he saw his feet were also tied down. ~There goes the running for the door plan.~ "How much did you ask for?"

"Enough."

~All of it.~ "Can I get a drink of water?" The guy glared at him for a few seconds. Gabe tried for an abashed place. "Please."

The guy turned his head and yelled towards a door at a door that was diagonal to Gabe's seat. "Frank! Bring a glass of water!"

A few moments later, the guy Gabe had punched in the neck walked into the room with a glass. He glared at Gabe. "Rich little shit."

Gabe waited for his drink of water before he replied. Frank was pushing the glass at him so hard more of the water was going down the front of his shirt than down his throat. He swallowed what he could. "I don't think it was money that hit you."

"You're tied up. You might want to shut up."

"I can kick your ass with all these ropes and a blindfold." Frank hit him so hard the chair tipped backwards, and Gabe just barely managed to keep his head in one piece. ~Gabe, shut up.~

*

Tyler Mason answered the door in pajama pants, an old concert T-shirt, and tufty hair. He gave Judson the once-over. "You're Judson."

"Yeah."

Tyler looked at Mac. "You don't look familiar."

"Mackenzie Previn. I'm a friend of Gabe's."

"Yeah. He mentioned you. Where's he?"

"Missing." Judson watched Tyler's eyes widen and then the man stepped back and gestured them into the apartment.

"Come on in. It's freezing." Tyler waited for them to come in, and he closed the door. "What happened?"

"We're not sure. His dad called us looking for him about an hour ago. We haven't heard from him at all."

"His dad got a ransom note."

Tyler stared at Mac. "Shit." He took a deep breath and pushed it out with some force. "He's been kidnapped?"

"Wouldn't be the first time." Mac managed to look a little abashed at the look she got from both men. "Well, he *has* been kidnapped before, just never like this."

Tyler laughed a little. "Gabe always was attracting trouble. Drove his dad nuts."

Judson smiled at that. "Drives us nuts, too. What time did you see him last?"

"We split up about nine. He needed to be home by ten, and the bus ride is pretty long."

"He took the bus?"

"We usually did to go clubbing. Harder to drive drunk when you don't have anything to drive."

"Where did you guys split up at?"

Tyler thought for a second. "Right about the middle of the strip over on ninth. It's all clubs and bars. He went left to get to the bus stop, and I went into the next club."

Judson nodded and pulled out his notebook. "Where'd you go with Judson?"

"Um?'Rakers' and 'Kitchen'. 'Rakers' is on the north end of the strip, it's got a big sign, you can't miss it. 'Kitchen' is a little basement club three doors down from 'Rakers'."

"Did you see anyone suspicious?"

"I wasn't really looking." Tyler gave Mac an apologetic look. "I know he's a senator's son and rich as hell, but no one really knows him with the exception of a few overly wealthy people who read 'Forbes' like it's the last vote on everything. He's never worried about anything like this."

~I'm going to cure him of that.~ Judson put away his notebook. "Okay. We'll leave you to sleep."

"You think I'm going to *sleep*? My best friend is missing."

~My *partner* is missing. Fuck you.~

Mac saw the set of Judson's jaw and intervened. "You could go to Gabe's house and keep his father company. I'm sure he'll be up all night, too. In stuff like this, misery loves company."

"Yeah, I could do that." Tyler turned a circle in place, and then looked at Judson. "I'm sorry. I saw your face get all tense with what I said, and I didn't mean it to bother you. Gabe and I grew up together, and this is freaking me out."

Judson forced himself to relax. "Yeah, me too."

"You guys mind showing yourselves out? I'm gonna go get dressed."

Mac grabbed Judson's elbow and pulled him towards the door. She waited until they were outside before laughing. "Well, that was hysterical. Alpha male versus his mate's closest connection outside the pack."

"What?"

She waved him off. "Sorry, been reading the Anthro books Gabe leaves lying around."

"Stop it."

"Why? So you won't lose your place? I know you read them when he's not looking."

Judson opened the car door. "He knows it, too. We were going to spend the last day in dock at the Anthropology museum on the University campus."

Mac watched Judson's face close off again. "We'll find him."

"Yeah." Judson stared out the window?

?"The museum's a little small, but it's got some pretty cool stuff. There's a whole set-up on the tools of the Neandertal era. Tyler e-mailed me about it yesterday." Gabe sat on the couch beside Judson and propped his feet on the coffee table. "You just finished the book on tools, didn't you?"

"Yeah, it was very, very dry."

"Yeah." Gabe grinned.

"Someone should really explain to people that just because they have alphabet soup after their names, it does not mean they need to write a book."

"Yeah." Gabe shifted over and sat on Judson's lap, straddling him.

"Mac's in the galley."

"Yeah."

Judson put his hands on Gabe's hips. "And if we're in a compromising position when she walks out?"

"She'll ogle us like usual." Gabe leaned in and kissed Judson?

?"Hey, rich boy." Frank smacked Gabe on the head, just above the bruise from the first attack.

Gabe winced and did his best to glare up at the man. "What the fuck do you want? I was trying to *relax*."

Frank yanked Gabe's chin up. "Just wanted you to know I plan to beat the living shit out of you right before we give you back to your daddy."

"You going to untie me so I get a fair fight, or are you playing it chicken?"

Frank kicked Gabe in the chest. He grinned as Gabe gasped. "I haven't decided yet."

"I'm guessing chicken."

Frank punched Gabe in the jaw.



(3)

'Rakers' had been a bust. It was a small, black-lit place with such a myriad of people and faces anyone looking suspicious would have been very hard to pick out. Mac and Judson had better luck at 'Kitchen', where the bartender was closing up for the night but allowed Judson and Mac to come in for a quick cup of coffee. She had taken one look at the picture in Judson's wallet and nodded.

"I remember him. He came in with Tyler, and Tyler introduced him to me. He said he was only in town until the day after tomorrow, but that he wanted to come back and bring his friends." She smiled at them. "Those would be you, I assume."

Mac smiled back. "That's us. How long did they stay?"

"A little over an hour. Tyler came by to pay up his tab before he left, and then they walked out the door. His friend-"

"Gabe," Judson supplied.

"Gabe was telling Tyler he had to get home soon. Tyler was trying to get him to hit one more club."

"How do you know Tyler?"

"We went to high school together."

"You didn't know Gabe?"

She laughed at Judson's question. "A Senator's son go to public high school? You can't be serious."

Judson smiled a little. "I guess not."

"He's mentioned him to me; they've been friends forever."

"How did Gabe seem?" Mac took a healthy sip from her coffee.

"He's wasn't acting like someone was out to get him. They danced some, he waved off a couple of girls, then he waved off two guys."

"Guys?"

~Down, Judson.~ Mac put a hand on his arm and gave him a look that said she would handle this part of the conversation. "Did they seem like they were coming onto him?"

"I couldn't say. I only noticed it because Tyler was watching from the bar and laughing about it."

"Tyler saw the guys?"

"Yeah."

"Okay, thanks." Mac slammed the rest of her coffee. "Great coffee." She and Judson left the bar. Judson was already dialing Patterson's number as they hit the door.

"Mr. Patterson, it's Judson. Is Tyler there with you? Okay, put him on." Judson tapped his fingers against his thigh and waited for a few seconds. "Tyler? It's Judson. We just came out of the 'Kitchen'. The bartender says she knows you?uh-huh?Look, she says you saw Gabe talk to a couple of guys, what'd they look like?" There was a long pause, then Judson thanked Tyler and closed his phone. "One guy was really big, kind of scraggly hair, and lots of muscles. Other one
was about the same size, but he was flabby. He didn't get a really good look at either of them."

"Still, it's something."

Judson nodded. "Yeah." He looked down the strip. It was mostly quiet as the clubs and bars shut down and very nearly deserted. "Come on." He started walking very slowly, looking for anything that might give a hint about what happened to Gabe.

Mac followed him, putting all her concentration on the sidewalk and the edge of the street. They walked in silence, stopping if something looked vaguely useful. They were nearly to the end of the strip when Mac saw a shiny spot on the far side of the sidewalk. She crouched in front of it and touched it. Even in the slightly dim lighting of the streetlamps, it was red. "I'm pretty sure it's blood."

"I'm definitely sure it's blood." Judson was three feet away from her in the mouth of an alley; he was holding a piece of board in his hand, and there was blood on it. He waved it at Mac. "You think he put up a fight?"

"Gabe? Never." Mac smirked at her own sarcasm, and then she froze at the sight of something in the gutter. Hoping she was wrong, she leaned over and picked up the ring. It was gold, and there were emeralds along the edges. ~Fuck.~ She held it up to Judson silently.

*

Gabe was pretty sure he had a couple of broken ribs, and he would put a lot of money down on the possibility of a concussion and the need for stitches. And he was also pretty sure that the weight in his pocket was his cell phone. He would have laughed at the stupidity of his kidnappers not patting him down if he wasn't certain it would be entirely to painful. He settled for laughing in his head and wondering how to get Frank out of the room so he could try to reach it. It took him longer than normal to come up with a solution, but he blamed the concussion.

"I think I'm gonna puke."

Frank looked up from his magazine and scowled. "So puke on yourself."

Gabe faked a gag. "Look, man, I'm really gonna puke, and when I do-" He cut off with another fake gag, "do you really want to have to smell it on me?"

Frank looked like he was thinking it over. Another false gag from Gabe had him on his feet and working at untying the ropes. "You try one thing, I'll knock you out cold."

"Yeah, okay." Gabe stood carefully, trying to asses his injuries as he was led to the bathroom. Now that he was moving, he really *did* feel like he was going to be sick. ~Concussion definitely.~ He tried to take a deep breath, and the pain in his chest reassured him his ribs were broken. ~Oh, and the fun just keeps coming.~

"I don't hear you puking in thirty seconds, I'm coming in." Frank stood by the door and gave Gabe a push.

This time the gag was for real. Gabe barely had time to get his head even with the toilet before he vomited. He vaguely heard the sound of the door slam shut, and as soon as he was certain, he reached into his pocket. The weight was, indeed, his phone. ~Yes!~ He hit the menu button blindly and punched send on the first number that came up. He stood shakily and turned the water on as high as it would go, bending carefully to rinse out his mouth as the phone rang.

"Judson Cross."

~Thank god.~ "Judson?" Gabe kept his voice to a whisper.

"Gabe?"

"Yeah."

"Where are you?"

"I-I don't-shit." Gabe raced back over to the toilet. He dry-heaved for a few seconds before getting back to the phone. "I'm pretty sure I've got a concussion and some broken ribs." He rubbed his eyes, and then pulled his hand away from his face. "And I lost my ring."

"We found it. Gabe, where are you?"

"I don't know. I was going to the bus stop, and a guy pulled a gun on me, and I hit him, and then another guy smashed me on the head. I woke up tied to a chair and not in a good way."

"This is no time to be joking."

"Judson, I have been kidnapped, hit and now I'm vomiting. It's a perfect time to be joking." Gabe glanced at the door. He had very little time. "You have to get to my computer and bring up the tracking program. These shitheads didn't search me, so I have my phone. I'll keep it on, but I only have a couple of hours worth of battery. Trace the signal and find me."

"Okay." There was a minute pause. "I love you."

"Love you. Hurry up. I feel like shit."

"Be careful."

The doorknob rattled, and Gabe hastily shoved his phone into his pocket. He bent over the sink and got a couple of mouthfuls of water as Frank slammed into the room. "Hurry the fuck up."

Gabe straightened and turned around. "Okay, okay, I'm coming." He followed Frank back into the other room and let himself be tied up again. ~Come on, Judson.~



(4)



Mac watched as Judson closed his phone and stared at it a few seconds. "Judson?"

"They didn't search him. He still has his phone."

"You're kidding."

"I'm not." Judson took a deep breath, then looked up and made eye contact with Mac. "He thinks he has a concussion and some busted ribs, but he's okay." He finally put his phone back in his pocket. "He says there's a tracking program on his computer, and we can trace his phone."

Mac stood up and walked over to Judson. She handed him the ring. "You're going to need this."

Judson took it from her, turned it over in his hand, and then slid it onto his ring finger above his own ring. It was a tight fit, but it made him feel better. "Do you know how to run the program?"

"I don't know. He's been showing me different things as he uses them, but I can't be sure he's shown me this one."

"Let's get back to the boat. If you can't run the trace, we'll call the police."

Mac raised her eyebrows as they hurried back to the Rover. "You promised Patterson you'd wait twenty-four hours."

"That was with a ransom note and no other information. If I have to call the cops in earlier than promised because one of them can run the program, and we'll find him, I'll do it. The good Senator can get the hell over it."

Mac maintained silence as they got into the Rover. She knew that tone of Judson's voice. It was the same one he used with people who tried to bribe him or get him to lie. You didn't try to argue with that tone of voice. She drove to the boat and followed Judson down to the living room. She waited while he veered into his and Gabe's bedroom and retrieved the laptop. She took it from him and opened it on the coffee table. "You might want to at least give Patterson a call, let him know we heard from Gabe." Silence met her, and when Mac glanced over at him, Judson's jaw was clenched. "Or, you could be an unbearable ass and not call."

Judson unclenched his jaw to speak. "You realize he hasn't called us at all?"

"You told him you'd call him."

"And he didn't even ask me any questions when I called earlier to talk to Tyler."

"Judson, what exactly are you saying?"

"If it were your kid, and you didn?t know anything past the fact that a couple of guys were holding him for his entire trust fund, wouldn't you worry? Wouldn't you be calling the people you had investigating every five minutes? Wouldn't you ask questions if one of those people called to get a description?"

Mac tapped her fingers on the table. "Are you suggesting that the good Senator is somehow involved?"

"Maybe."

"That's a big accusation, Judson."

"I know." He looked down at the computer. "Can you run it?"

"It's got a step-by-step instruction manual in the 'help' section. I can muddle through."

"I'm going up top."

"Okay."

Judson headed back up to the top deck of the *Explorer* and took in a deep, harsh breath of middle-of-winter Vermont air as he looked around him. It was going to be dawn in a couple of hours, and the stars were already fading out in the sky. The moon was gone completely, having been full the week before, and Judson thought back to the night they'd pulled into port?

?It was near midnight when they pulled into the dock, and Gabe, with a whoop, had run up to the top deck in nothing but sneakers, khakis, and a T-shirt. Judson had followed at a slightly more sedate pace with Gabe's coat in his hand, and a smile on his face. "You'll freeze."

"Nah, this is warm for Vermont."

"It's ten degrees. With wind."

Gabe grinned, but he did pull his coat on. He wrapped both arms around Judson's waist and hugged him tightly. "So keep me warm."

Judson smiled at him and pulled him closer. "Glad to be here?"

"Yeah." Gabe leaned up and kissed him. "Glad you're with me. Glad you're going to get to meet my dad."

Judson ignored the sudden falling of his stomach to his knees. He wasn't looking especially forward to meeting the good Senator. He couldn't help but think there was 'bad influence' tattooed on his forehead. "I can't wait."

"You're lying."

"Just a little."

Gabe laughed and looked up at the sky. "Look at all the stars." He breathed out and a cloud of mist dissolved in front of his face. "They're in the right places."

Judson looked up also. He'd heard Gabe's mock-complaints about the stars being rearranged when they were traveling, and he had to admit he had an easier time finding the constellations when they were on the East Coast. He looked back down and enjoyed the sight of Gabe by moonlight?

?"Judson, I think I've got it started." Mac stood in the threshold of the door leading into the boat and spoke quietly.

"Okay."

She watched him look up at the stars. "You still think his dad had something to do with it?"

"I don?t know." He dropped his head and rubbed the back of his neck. "I know my judgement's not exactly clear."

"Really?"

"Really." Judson smiled a little. "I'm just-"

"Scared?" Mac stepped onto the boat deck and reached out to squeeze Judson's arm. "You're allowed."

"I know, but?I've never been scared like this. This?he got sick when he was on the phone with me, and I wanted to find the guys who made him sick and do things to them that would make them so sick they wouldn't be able to so much as *look* at someone, let alone kidnap anyone else again."

"You're in love."

"I've never been in love like this."

Mac hugged him with one arm. "You've handled it so far. This is just a really *unexpected* bump in the relationship road."

Judson laughed a little at the look on Mac's face. "You wouldn't think so, it being Gabe." He huffed out a breath. "You said you got it going?"

"Yeah. Are you going to call his father?"

"Not yet. Let's find him first." They walked back down into the boat together and sat in silence on the couch until Mac stood to get coffee for the both of them, and Judson's cell phone went off. "Hello?"

"Mr. Cross, it's Kenneth Patterson. I was wondering if you had any news?"

"Nothing concrete yet."

"Nothing like a phone call?"

Judson's hand tightened on his phone. "What are you talking about?"

"I've heard that you've received a phone call from my son."

"Where did you get your information?"

"From the man on my security team that I sent to follow you."

"You sent someone to follow me?"


"I wanted to be kept up to date."

"I *said* I would *call*."

"You haven't."

"Nothing's happened."

"My son called you."

Judson held his breath until his temper came down. "And with the information he gave us, we're tracking him."

"Why didn't you call me?"

"Because we were waiting until we knew if we could run the program that let's us track his cell phone. Gabe usually handles the technical side of things."

There was another pause, and when Patterson spoke, he sounded slightly remorseful. "I see. Is it working?"

"Yes. I'll call when we find him."

"Thank you."

"Get your man away from us if you don't want to see what Mac can do to someone she's pissed at."

"I will."

Judson shut his phone and leaned his head back onto the couch.

"Everything okay?" Mac held out a cup of coffee.

"Patterson isn't in on the kidnapping. He was having us followed."

"*What*?"

"He just told me. I told him if he didn't want to see you angry, he'd remove his man. He said he would."

Mac dropped onto the couch next to Judson. "That bastard."

"Yeah."

They went back to staring at the computer screen.



(5)

Gabe was drowsing in his chair, trying to ignore the pounding in his head, the numbing in his wrists, and the sounds of Frank cleaning his gun across the room. He knew he shouldn't sleep with a possible concussion, but he was tired and achy, and Judson should have been here by now. He dropped his head to his chest, eyes closing completely, and he was just on the edge of properly sleeping when a crash came from across the room. He jerked his head up, cursing as it caused him more pain, and tried to see through his blurry vision. Something vaguely Mac-shaped kicked Frank in the head, and Gabe smiled a little.

"Gabe, talk to me."

He turned his head a fraction of an inch and saw Judson inches away from his face. "I'm sleepy."

"I know, but you've got to stay awake for a little while, okay? The cops are on their way with an ambulance, and you need to stay awake until the paramedics get here."

"No hospital."

"Yes, hospital. I want you properly looked over." Judson leaned in and kissed Gabe on the mouth as blue and red lights started flashing through the windows. "I'll be right there with you, okay?"

"No needles."

"I'll do my best."

Gabe lost consciousness as the paramedics came in. When he woke up again, he was in a hospital, in a drafty as hell paper gown, and there was an IV in his arm. He turned his head and saw Judson watching him. He looked down at the needle.

"I did the best I could, but they insisted. It's a painkiller."

"You found me." Gabe held out his hand.

"Told you we would." Judson took Gabe's hand and squeezed it gently. "Mac followed the steps on your tracking program, and we followed your cell signal, just like you said." Judson leaned in and kissed Gabe on the forehead, just above a rather nasty bruise that ran nearly the length of his face.

"Where's Mac?"

"She went to the boat to get some sleep. We've been up since two-thirty this morning."

"What time is it?"

"About three."

Gabe pulled Judson towards the bed. "Get in here."

"What?"

"Get in here. I know you. You didn't go to bed before one, which means you've had all of an hour of sleep in the last twenty-four, so get in here." Gabe pulled again.

Judson tried to get his hand free. "I am not climbing in there with you. I make one false move, I hit your ribs, or your face, or anywhere else you're black and blue, which, by the way, is *everywhere*, and you're in pain."

"You forget," Gabe nodded towards his IV. "Pain meds. On a line. Just get *in* here. I missed you."

Judson was going to argue for decorum's sake, but he wanted to hold Gabe so badly, he just leaned down, took off his boots, and climbed in next to the other man. He shifted to give Gabe maximum comfort, and paused for a moment when he remembered something. He reached to his left hand and pulled Gabe's ring off. He held it out to him. "You dropped this."

Gabe held out his hand. "Can't imagine why." He watched Judson put it back on his left ring finger, then leaned over and kissed him carefully, trying not to aggravate the cut on his lip. "When I'm awake again, I want to hear this whole story."

"You're not going to like parts of it."

"Which parts?" Gabe yawned and laid his head on Judson's shoulder.

"Well, your father had us followed."

"Wh?" Gabe was nearly asleep."

Judson put an arm around him carefully and kissed his forehead again. "I'll tell you later." He curled around Gabe a little more closely and nodded off soon after.



END