Chapter One: Taken

Through the van’s windshield the three friends saw the town approaching. The town was Buhmhik. It was a small country town with a population of roughly 5,500 people.  It was the kind of place where people waved at you when you drove by each other even if they didn’t know you, the kind of place where nothing bad could ever happen. Or so they thought…

                Joe pulled the van into an average looking driveway leading up to an average looking house. The house belonged to Joe and José. There were totally not gay, but they saved money this way and sharing the house served other purposes. Once the van stopped, they all got out and went up some average steps, through an average door, and into the average kitchen. The whole house was very average, except for the basement. No one was allowed in the basement.

                The three of them walked into the living room. Courtney dropped himself onto a big comfy chair while setting the box of cupcakes on a coffee table in the middle of the room. Joe went over to the entertainment center and turned on his Xbox 360. José turned on the HD TV as Joe handed him a controller.  A few minutes later the room was flooded with the sound of revved chainsaws cutting through flesh and skulls popping as Joe and José played Gears of War.

                “Damn! I jammed a reload!” José shouted at Joe.

                “I got you covered man!” Joe yelled back.

                They were so engrossed in the game they barely noticed that Courtney was no longer sitting in the chair where he was sitting just a moment ago.  

                “Hey where’d Courtney go?” Joe asked.

                “Don’t know, prolly to the bathroom. Look out frag!”

                They both keep playing the game; narrowly avoiding explosive tipped arrows, lobbing frag grenades, and turning people into mush when they got close enough.

                “Whoo! We won that round!” Joe proclaimed.

                “Dude, look…” José said. He was pointing at a half eaten cupcake sitting the Courtney’s chair.

                “Oh fuck,” Joe said. Joe knew that Courtney would never leave a cupcake uneaten. Something must have happened to him.

                “Look at this,” José said as he handed a piece of paper to Joe. On there paper was a bunch of letters that looked like they were cut out of magazines and newspapers.  It said this: WE HAVE COURTNEY. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHOULD YOU TRY AND GET HIM BACK. OR ELSE.

                “Or else what?” Joe wondered aloud.

                “There’s a second paper. Here,” José said as he handed Joe a second sheet. It read; YOU WILL DIE.

                “Oh okay. Who do you think could’ve done this? ” Joe said.

                “I don’t know, man, but I think I just found a clue,” José said as he held up the half eaten cupcake and pulled a hair off of it. “I bet whoever’s hair this is, is from the guy who nabbed Courtney. If we can run a DNA test on it we can find out who it is.”

                “Good idea dude. I think I know who can run the test for us. C’mon.”