"So... Simon. You watch any of those cop shows on tv?"

Simon turned his head, glancing at Clayton,"Uh... Well, no. Not in awhile-"

"Ok, well you know how the big bad robber goes into the store, flashes a gun at the happy little worker, and gets away with a big stash of money?" Clayton continued, disregarding Simon's comment.

"Uh huh..." Simon said. Damn, what's with this guy? First he recruits me for a crime spree and then he's talking to me like I'm in friggin' preschool?

Clayton smirked,"Let's just say it's not always that easy."

Wow. What words of wisdom. Simon thought, annoyed. Here I am, nervous as hell, and the guy's trying to make me feel more uncertain?

The car continued for many miles, past a dozen or so quaint rural homes that all looked the same to Simon.

"Now, this convenience store is pretty quiet this time of day. I've had men checking it out every night for the past week & it's practically deserted around now," Clayton said,"We'll wait until we're sure there's no customers, then you run in, do your thing, get your ass back out here, and we're done."

Voila! Simon thought, He makes it sound I'm going to bake a damn cake.

Simon closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the seat, rubbing his hands together anxiously. Lost in a little world of his own, he didn't come back to reality until the car came to a stop. At that point, his eyes flew open and he quickly peered through the window. He didn't recognize the area in detail, but figured it was somewhere on the outskirts of Tulsa.

"Here," Clayton said, pressing a handgun into Simon's palm,"Don't use this, ok? Just wave it around to scare the clerk."

The gun trembled in Simon's hand. He couldn't understand why holding it shook him up so much. Living on the streets, it wasn't all that unusual to see a few of them whipped out during a small brawl. Maybe it was the fact that he had never been directly involved in any of those incidents...

"See that sign up there?" Clayton said, pointing out the front of the car,"The convenience store is a half block or so east of it, but we're gonna let you out here."

Simon nodded, taking a huge quivering breath.

"Position yourself so you can see inside the store, but the clerk can't see you. Once there's no customers, do your thing."

"Ok," Simon said, trying to sound non-chalant, like this was something he did on a daily basis. He cautiously opened the car door and stepped out.

"Kid?"

Simon looked at Clayton, questioningly.

"Don't even think of pulling any shit. I've got guys in the area who'll be watching you like a hawk."

Fuck was the only thing that came to Simon's mind as he walked timidly along the sidewalk. He glanced back and saw Clayton as well as the driver staring at him intensely. He continued on until the store was in view.

Crouching behind a bright red Ford Mustang parked along the street, Simon surveyed the inside.

No one.

"This is it..." Simon whispered to himself, taking one last look around the neighborhood. Not a single soul in sight.

Strolling towards the store, Simon tucked the gun in his jacket pocket...

"Think it's over by now?" Taylor asked, flipping absent mindedly through a CD booklet.

Glancing at her watch, Elaina replied,"Not yet..."

The two had played countless games of Tic-Tac-Toe in Taylor's room, starved for entertainment. Finally, after the 14th game, Taylor forefeited, citing pure and utter boredom. Now they both sat on the bed, side-by-side, with their backs leaning against the headboard.

"So, Taylor, how many siblings do you have?" Elaina ventured, trying to break the silence.

"There are 7 of us in all, 4 boys and 3 girls," Taylor said, almost like a robot having answered similar questions in numerous interviews.

"Wow... That's quite a lot..." Elaina said,"I had one sister."

Taylor narrowed his brow,"Had? Did she... pass on?"

"Oh, no. No. She just sort of... disappeared," she ad-libbed, in an slightly icy tone that hinted at a change of topic.

Taylor nodded & gave a shy smile. His thoughts returned to his family, whom he knew would be incredibly distressed by now. The Hansons were a tight unit, made even tighter during the last few years of almost non-stop world travelling and touring...

Touring.

It was then that Taylor first realized he and his brothers were scheduled to be on tour... since yesterday.

"I talked with Chris and he said that all of the shows scheduled for the next 2 weeks have been officially postponed," Walker informed Isaac, who nodded solemnly from his bed where he had lain, staring at the ceiling lost in thought.

"The fans will understand. I highly doubt they don't know what's, uh, going on..." Isaac reasoned. Over the past few days, every local paper, as well as a large number of national and international publications, had featured stories on Taylor's disappearance.

"Would you mind telling Zac when you see him? Not that he'll be surprised," Walker said, stepping out into the hall and closing the bedroom door behind him.