"Damn," he mutters, seeing how late it is. He and Starr had been so busy all day, he didn't have a chance to call Tea again. Then he makes a face, suddenly realizing that Tea hasn't called him, either. He takes the phone out of his pocket, wondering if he should bother now.

He sighs, standing up. He hears Starr brushing her teeth...he walks over to the door and pokes his head in.

"Hey, I'm gonna go out on the porch for a minute, okay?"

She turns and looks at him, her mouth all foamy...she nods.

"Oh...so what do you think of the new house?"

Starr scrubs her teeth, thinking. Then she bites down on the toothbrush and gives him a thumbs-up.

He grins at her. "Cool."

He walks out, dialing the penthouse as he steps onto the porch. The screen door slams behind him as he leans against the rail.

It rings...and rings...and rings. Finally, the machine picks up...answering with the canned sound of Tea's voice.

"Hi, sorry we can't come to the phone right now. Leave us a message. Thanks."

BEEP. Todd holds the phone away, staring at it with a strange look on his face. He punches the end button and starts pacing along the porch. He looks at his watch again...and his brow furrows in tightly.

Just then, Starr appears in the doorway, dressed for bed. "Daddy?"

He turns around, snapping out of it. "Yeah."

He pockets the phone and goes inside, to get Starr off to sleep.

****************************************

About an hour later, Dean looks around him as he walks into a phone booth, near a gas station at least ten miles away from the docks. He punches in a code from a convenience-store calling card, then a phone number. He tucks the receiver between his face and shoulder as he lights up a cigarette.

All's quiet in Montana...and Todd lies on the bed, eyes closed, with Starr's arm draped over his chest. He strokes her hand gently with his thumb, starting to doze off himself...when the phone starts chirping. He jumps...Starr opens her eyes groggily. She yawns and turns over as he fishes in his pocket and sits up.

"Well, it's about time, Delgado...where've you been?" he whispers, getting up and walking over to the couch.

Dean grins, opening the folding door a crack to blow the smoke out. He clears his throat, thoroughly enjoying this part of the plan.

"Didya ever get the feeling you left something behind that you shouldn't have?" he asks, flatly.

Todd sits there, stunned speechless for a second by the strangeness of the voice...

...and the eerie familiarity of the question. Dean smiles wider, knowing he's gotten his attention.

"Listen to me very carefully...I have something that belongs to you. I'm sure you're wondering where she's been all day."

All the color drains out of Todd's face...his mouth opens...

"Make no attempt to trace this call or alert the cops in Llanview. If you do, she dies."

Todd stands up, whirling around and looking at Starr. He walks out onto the porch, closing the door behind him. He switches hands and growls into the phone.

"Who the HELL is this???"

Dean chuckles, growling right back. "With all due respect, Mr. Manning, you're in NO position to demand ANYTHING. You WILL listen to ME...or your lovely wife buys it. Are we clear???"

Todd runs a hand through his hair, not knowing what the heck is going on...but something tells him this is NO JOKE. He walks away from the house, his voice rising.

"You're not scaring ME, whoever you are. Identify yourself!!!"

Dean makes an impressed face on his end, his tone unchanged. "I repeat, make NO attempt to alert the cops. You'll hear from me soon."

Todd yells into the phone. "WHO ARE YOU???!!!"

Dean laughs, as he takes another drag...he blows it out quickly as he flicks the cigarette butt out onto the sidewalk. Then he points as if Todd were right there in front of him.

"Get it through your head, Manning...*I* have your wife...your Tea...the woman carrying your children..."

Todd opens his mouth to come back at him, but Dean cuts in quick.

"...you cross me...and I'll be shipping her back to you in pieces."

Todd feels the words go through him like a cold wind. Dean slams the phone down for extra punctuation, then walks back to the car, chuckling to himself. Todd stands there frozen for a moment, with the phone still by his ear. Then he whirls around, looking back at the house...then all around him, wildly, as if he were looking for a way out. He starts shaking his head, pacing along the dirt path, thinking...

This is NOT REAL...this is NOT HAPPENING...I'm gonna wake up now.

The guy was obviously just some lowlife yanking his chain...

...but he hadn't heard from Tea all day.

This couldn't possibly be happening, not after having just recovered from the disaster with Sykes and Starr's kidnapping...

...but he hadn't heard from Tea all day.

And he certainly wasn't going to take this loser's word for anything, just some miscellaneous voice on the phone...

...but the simple fact was...HE HADN'T HEARD FROM TEA ALL DAY...

...and his gut was telling him that this...was for real.

He wanted to jump back on the plane right that second...but he knew he couldn't just leave Starr like that. He looks at the phone again, trying to think of someone, ANYONE he could call...someone back at home...someone who could check the penthouse for him...someone whose first thought WOULDN'T be to call the police. His mind races, thinking, thinking, thinking...suddenly, his eyes widen, and he hurriedly dials some numbers.

An operator answers. "What city, please?"

"Llanview."

"Go ahead, sir."

"Yeah, gimme the number to Club Indigo."

***************************************

The phone starts ringing on the bar at Indigo. The place is empty, all the lights are off...except for one. RJ sits at one of the tables, sipping coffee and going over some paperwork by a tiny lantern's light. He looks up at the phone, strangely. He sighs, shaking his head, looking back down at the papers.

Todd paces up and down the path, talking to himself. "No...no...come on, Gannon...you GOTTA be there, COME ON!"

RJ looks back up at the phone, going on its tenth or eleventh ring. He makes a face...then gets up, slowly, strolling over to the bar. He looks at his watch, shaking his head...then picks up.

"We're closed," he says coolly, then hangs up.

CLICK. Todd does a take, then brings his fists up and down in frustration, teeth clenched. He takes a long, deep breath...then redials.

The phone starts ringing again just as RJ goes to sit back down. He glares at the phone for a moment, starting to get annoyed. He waits...but it just keeps ringing. He laughs to himself as he strolls back to the bar, ready to get nasty.

He picks up again. "Maybe you didn't hear me the first time. I said WE'RE CLOSED."

Todd yells in his ear before he can hang up. "DAMMIT, GANNON!! DON'T YOU HANG UP ON ME!!!"

RJ makes a face, holding the phone away. He puts the phone back to his ear carefully.

"Who the hell is THIS?"

Todd sighs. "It's me."

RJ laughs. "Uh, you could be more...specific?"

"Oh, shut up, it's ME, dammit...Todd!"

RJ does a take, not saying anything for a moment, stunned. He doesn't hear anything on the other end...finally, he sits down on one of the stools.

"Todd...uh-huh. Uh, not to be rude, man, but...the hell you doin' callin' ME...at THIS hour??"

Todd feels his legs wobbling...and all of his energy draining, fast. Powerless, he folds up... landing in the grass on his behind and burying his head in his hand, phone still by his ear. RJ listens to the silence...and starts to get a really awful feeling.

His tone softens. "Hey...Todd, you still with me, man? What's goin' on?"

Todd takes a deep breath. "Gannon, I...I...I really need your help."

RJ shrinks back from the phone, completely caught off-guard by all this

"I...wha...wait, wait...just tell me what's goin' on."

"It's Delgado..."

The tone of his voice sends a shudder down RJ's spine. "What? Oh, God...is she okay?"

Todd speaks low, his head still buried in his hand, face hidden behind his hair.

"I need you to go to the penthouse...RIGHT NOW."

RJ stands up, nervous. "Todd, what the HELL is going on??"

"Just go to the penthouse. Break in if you have to, I don't care...just get over there NOW."

"I'm not going ANYWHERE until you tell me WHY."

Todd looks up finally, his eyes glazed over with fear. "I think...I think she's gone. I think somebody took her..."

RJ makes a face. "WHAT??!!"

"...I-I haven't talked to her all day...and I...I just got this call from...from some guy who says he HAS her."

RJ hesitates a moment...then gapes, in shock. "You're not kidding."

Todd shuts his eyes. "Please...just get over there and tell me if it's true. PLEASE, man...I'm begging you."

RJ nods. "Yeah, yeah...okay. I'm out the door. Gimme your number there."

******************************************

RJ gets off the elevator and runs over to the door to the penthouse. He takes out his lock picking tools and works on the knob with gloved hands. After some careful monkeying around, the lock disengages with a soft click. He puts the tools away and turns the knob, slowly, opening the door.

He steps inside, shuts the door, and looks around. He turns on the flashlight he's carrying with him, shining the beam into the dark, deserted foyer and living room. He walks around, checking everything out carefully. He shines the beam on the couch...where Tea's purse sits. He makes a face, walking over to it and looking inside...everything's still in it.

He moves over to the stairs and looks up. He takes a deep breath as he climbs the staircase, slowly. The stairs creak a little as he gets up to the second floor. He whips the beam around behind him, then forward, toward the master bedroom. He treads lightly down the hall and up to the doorway. He covers the beam, and peers inside...

...the bed is unmade...but empty. He scans the entire room before shining the beam inside. As he steps in, he reels back a bit from the nasty smell that hits him. He wrinkles his nose, trying to shake it...wondering what it is. He walks over to the bed and scans it with the beam...she was definitely sleeping there at some point, the pillows and sheets all tossed around. He sees the books lying all over the bed. He shines the beam over at the far side of the room, but doesn't see anything out of the ordinary. He walks back around to the bottom of the bed, noticing the awful stink getting stronger...but doesn't see anything on the bed. He turns the beam down to the floor...and stops.

He crouches down, seeing the huge stain on the carpet...he touches it, then looks at his finger...but it's dry. He bends down farther and sniffs...the smell's definitely coming from there. He shines the beam along the floor...and suddenly sees the huge mess he walked right over. He gets up, moving across the room and turning the overhead lights on. There, spread out all over the rug, is the remains of a sandwich, with the plate not far from it. Underneath the glass is the huge, smelly stain of spilled milk that hasn't been cleaned up.

RJ falls back against the doorsill, putting a hand to his mouth...his heart sinking like a rock.

**************************************

Todd sits on the porch, folded up...knees drawn in, head buried in his arms, rocking himself back and forth.

The phone chirps...his head pops up and he fumbles with it, finally putting it to his ear.

"Gannon."

RJ stands in the living room, on the phone by the desk. "Yeah, it's me."

Todd stands up, running a hand through his hair. "Well???"

RJ takes a deep breath, looking around the deserted place. "Well, whoever that was...they weren't kidding, man. She's gone."

Todd shuts his eyes, his chest heaving, barely able to speak. "H-h-how...?"

"I've checked the whole house...the place is pretty clean, except for the bedroom. She was definitely here, though...the bed's unmade, there's books and stuff laying around..."

He sighs heavily. "...and a huge, smelly mess of food on the floor."

Todd holds his breath. RJ pulls the chair out and plops down, running a hand over his braided hair.

"If I had to guess, I'd say she was attacked from behind, when she was coming back from the kitchen. She probably dropped the stuff when the guy grabbed her."

Nothing but silence on Todd's end...RJ thinks a moment.

"Look, Todd...you'd better call Bo, NOW."

Todd falls back onto the steps, at a total loss. "I CAN'T, Gannon, don't you GET IT?? He said...he said he'd..."

He shuts his eyes. "...kill her."

"Well, not to be cold here, but...OF COURSE he's gonna say that. But how the hell would HE know if you called anyone?"

"And exactly WHAT would I tell him? I have NOTHING. A stupid phone call...and a mess on my bedroom floor. That's not gonna help find her."

There's silence for a moment as both of them try to think of something. Finally, RJ sits back in the chair, sighing again.

"Did he say ANYTHING else?"

Todd shrugs, completely drained. "No, I...except that I'd hear from him soon."

RJ rubs his face. "Uh...okay. What do we do, then?"

Todd's brow creases. "We?"

"Yeah..." RJ replies, standing up and pacing along the living room carpet, kind of laughing to himself.

"...hey, look, man...you can't just call me up in the middle of the night, tell me my best friend's missing, and then DITCH me...just doesn't work that way."

Todd stares out at the woods, his racing mind now at a total standstill.

"I...I don't know WHAT to do, Gannon."

RJ walks over to the staircase and sits down on the bottom step. "Okay, look. Usually, the whole idea behind kidnapping is ransom, right? So the demands must be coming."

"IF that's what he's after."

"Yeah, but, think about it...if he was a stalker whackjob like Sykes, you wouldn't have heard ANYTHING...she'd just be gone. So the fact that he called you at all, means he WANTS something..."

Todd nods slightly, knowing he's probably right.

"...and if he's at all professional, which he sounds like he is, he won't waste any time. You'll hear from him within the next few hours, I would think."

Todd continues to nod...then furrows his brow. "How the hell do YOU know all this?"

RJ grins, shrugging. "Well, what can I say...I try to be good, but a lotta times I just THINK like a criminal."

Todd makes a face, as close to a smile as he can get right then. Finally, he sighs.

"Guess all I can do is...wait."

RJ nods. "Call me as soon as you hear anything...we'll figure out what to do from there."

There's another silence...then Todd practically whispers into the phone, his eyes glazed over.

"Think she's alright?"

RJ sighs heavily, thinking. "Yeah...yeah. Knowing Tea...she's dealin'. But we'll get her back...we will."

Todd blinks slowly, his mind far away. "We HAVE to," he says softly.

Then he punches the end button.

RJ hears the click and the silence...then tosses the phone onto the couch. He sits there on the step for a while, eyes closed, praying silently.

Todd gets up and goes back inside, shutting the door quietly. He walks over to the bed in a zombie-like state, clutching the phone as he lies down next to Starr, who's turned on her side, away from him. He stares up at the ceiling for a long time, still in shock.

After a while, he hears Starr mumbling in her sleep, and turns to look at her. Her sweet-sounding voice draws him to her. He sighs heavily, and rolls over, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her to him gently. She stirs, but doesn't fight him...almost as if she knows it's him. She turns all the way around, still mumbling away nonsensically. She snuggles up against his chest, facing him, and falls back to sleep immediately.

The shock wears off after a while...leaving him trapped in a haze of fear and helplessness. Unable to do anything else, he hugs her tightly, resting his head on hers. He closes his eyes, stroking her hair...trying to imagine where Tea is...and if she's alright.