..."And in local news, C-94 FM recently received a fax from an anonymous source stating that Taylor Hanson, of the famous pop trio Hanson, is missing. We do not know the validity of this information, though the source is said to be connected with Tulsa police. The fax states 16-year old Taylor was last seen yesterday afternoon and has not been heard from since. We are awaiting confirmation of this news from either police or the Hanson family themselves. We will bring you up-to-date on this situation as soon as information becomes available... Now in sports, a local softball team is headed to the National Championships in Des Moines, Iowa. Coached by Darren-"
Click Zac turned off the radio. He looked at Jayden, who had frozen in the midst of folding one of his shirts. The two shared a wordless conversation before tearing off down the stairs.
"Mom?" Zac called, reaching the living room with Jayden steps behind. Diana hurried in from the kitchen, a look of panic on her face.
"What?? Is something wrong? Who's hurt?"
Zac placed his hand on his mother's arm,"No one's hurt, but Mom, they just had- on the radio-"
"They had a news report about Taylor's disappearance!" Jayden interjected.
Diana looked slightly confused,"But how would the media have found out?"
"They said something about a 'police source'," Zac explained,"Some officer must've leaked it."
Diana scowled,"So they can call a damn radio station, but they're too lazy to get off their big asses and go look for him!"
Zac was somewhat taken aback, not having seen his mother get so riled up very often.
"Well, at least Tulsa fans know... I mean, hey, they're probably organizing a big search party as we speak!" Jayden said, with fake enthusiasm.
Zac's face fell,"Oh no... The fans..."
"What about the fans?" Walker asked, coming down the stairs.
"Taylor's disappearance was just reported on the radio - some police source or something," Zac explained,"And now that the fans know..."
Jayden picked up where Zac trailed off,"...your front lawn is going to be the new home of many, many upset girls."
Walker sighed,"Well, I'm sure if we tell them that we don't want any distractions, they won't stay long... or at the very least they'll be quiet."
Suddenly, as if timed perfectly, a loud series of knocks sounded from the front door. With a somewhat annoyed look, Walker went to answer it. Before the door had been opened even a foot, numerous voices began to shout out questions.
"Sir, can you tell us anything about your missing son?"
"Do you have any leads as to where young Taylor may be?"
"Is your son's disappearance in anyway connected with a cult? Has he been involved in any gothic acts?"
"Is it true that Taylor has left Tulsa in order to escape various police charges of violence?"
Holding up his hand, silencing the barrage of media, Walker said sternly,"No comment."
Even as the door was closing, one overbearing reporter managed to wedge a tape recorder in through the crack. As it was poking through a few inches, Walker took the opportunity to grab it and bring it inside with him.
"I stand corrected," Zac said from the kitchen, where he, his mother, & Jayden had been watching the scene,"Mom, Dad, prepare to have many, many reporters on our front lawn..."
"Well," Walker said, scratching his head,"I'm going to make sure Avery & Mackie aren't still playing outside."
He placed the tape recorder on an end table and headed for the back of the house.
"I'm going to call the police & tell them that they had better be looking for Taylor this very instant," Diana crowed,"Or it's no more Mrs Nice Mom."
Jayden scrunched up her nose slightly. She had never, ever seen Mrs. Hanson so... heated. Zac looked equally as surprised, as the two watched her retrieve the cordless phone & head upstairs.
"Have you guys seen-" Ike started, as he passed Diana on the way downstairs.
"We know." Jayden & Zac said in unison.
"But there's all these reporters-" Ike said incredulously.
"We know."
Isaac folded his arms across his chest,"Well, if you two know so much, could you please tell me why our yard now resembles a middle-aged mosh pit?"
Zac picked up the tape recorder,"Some police officer tipped off C94 & Taylor's so-called disappearance is now Tulsa news."
Ike smirked,"Great. 'To serve and protect'... Since when did 'To squeal on' become a part of the police's motto?"
"Play the tape, Zac," Jayden urged as she eyed the recorder.
Zac obediently rewound the tape, which took only a few seconds. There wasn't much on the tape, but what there was, to the three of them seemed quite odd.
"'Is your son's disappearance in anyway connected with a cult? Has he been involved in any gothic acts?'" Zac mimicked a reporter,"Geez, you'd think our last name was Manson, not Hanson."
Jayden laughed,"Yeah, but then there's 'Is it true that Taylor has left Tulsa in order to escape various police charges of violence?'"
"Do these people even know a tiny bit about us? I mean, not that we have squeaky-clean images," Ike said, to which Jayden rolled her eyes jokingly,"but beating up old ladies isn't exactly a hobby of ours."
"When are they gonna screw off & leave us alone?" Jayden wondered aloud as a chorus of muffled questions could be heard through the door.
Zac looked at his watch,"If my calculations are correct... in 1 hour, 43 minutes, and 16.2 seconds."
"Care to place any bets on that?" Ike asked smugly.
His brother gave Ike a short smile before yelling,"Daaaaaaaad! Moooooooooom! Ike's encouraging me to gamble!"
"Oh, shut up would ya?" Isaac said, giving Zac a small slap upside the head.
"Mooooooom! Daaaaaaaad! Now he's assaulting me, too!"
"Zac! Shut up!" two voices, those of Jessica and Avery, came from the second floor.
Jayden laughed,"Aw, poor Zac. He got told by his sisters."
Zac shrugged off the comments & walked towards the living room's bay window. He now had a clear view of the mass of people.
"Hey guys... C'mere," he said quietly, a sly grin on his face.
Jayden & Ike joined Zac by the window.
"Ok, now on the count of three, I'm going to knock really loud on the glass. When everyone looks over here, smoosh your face against the window, 'k?" Zac instructed.
Isaac shook his head,"Zac, have you lost your mind?"
"Months ago." Zac said stoutly,"Now do as I say."
Jayden sighed,"Ok, Zac, but if a picture of my face all squished up ends up on the cover of the paper tomorrow, you had better transport your little butt out of Tulsa ASAP."
"Since when are you interested in my butt?" Zac snorted.
"Are we gonna do this or not?" Ike interrupted.
Zac nodded and began pounding the window. Several heads turned to distinguish where the noise was coming from.
"1... 2... 3!!!"
In a split second, three young faces were smushed against the window pane. Hungry for any material at all, photographers busily snapped photo after photo until 20 seconds later, when their subjects stepped back leaving only smudges on the glass.
"I can't believe they actually took pictures!" Zac exclaimed, when the trio had ceased laughing and settled in the kitchen.
"Are you kidding?!" Ike cried,"It'll make a great cover pic!"
Jayden rolled her eyes,"Oh yeah... 'Hanson Member Missing-Family In Distress' and then a big ol' photo of three goofy, smooshed faces..."
"It would be touching, now wouldn't it?" Zac pondered jokingly,"Brings a tear to my eye just thinking about it..."
~Chapter 28~
~Chapter 26~
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