Zack wakes up

Zack’s head throbbed as he came to. He could hear voices coming from somewhere. All he knew about his current situation is that he was hanging upside down and blindfolded in a cool, damp place.

“DAMN IT!” If we had waited FIFTEEN more minutes, we would have had TWO of the girls! Instead we are stuck with him and the cop’s wife. He’ll work in the mines for a year or two, tops, and she’s only got another couple of years before her body starts sagging. So we’re gonna get screwed on prices. Counting the cop’s daughter, we missed out on THREE prime teenaged girls all because YOU got scared. You screwed up, so it’s coming out of your cut!” a sinister voice shouted.

“Sorry, but this one spotted me. I had ****,” replied a second person.

“YES, you did. You could have acted like a late night hiker, camping out in the park and everything would have been fine,” the evil voice spoke again. It became clear to Zack that this person was the leader of whatever plot was taking place.

“But he’s the one that was here with the blonde girl. He knows something is going on,” the weaker voice responded.

“Well, it’ll have to do. Can’t risk trying to get another one with a search party that large out in the park,” the leader said, “Damn shame! The girls would have brought much, MUCH more money.”

Zack’s blindfold slipped off his head. He was able to discern that he was in a cave somewhere in the park. He was chained to the ceiling. Looking down at the ground, he saw a pair of bear suits. To his left, he was able to make out the form of an older female. She, too, was chained and hanging upside down. Unlike Zack, though, her clothing was in tatters. And she had a ball gag in her mouth.

“Oh shit!” he said to himself when he realized the woman next to him was Susan Rivera, Lisa’s mother.

“Hey, he’s awake!” the weaker voice spoke.

“Knock him out and crate him. At this rate, the search party will be here in about two hours. We need to hurry up and get him airborne,” the leader ordered.

Zack looked up in confusion as he saw someone approach him. He began fighting against his restraints when he saw his attacker pull out a large needle. Then he saw the person’s face.

“Hey I know you. You’rrrr…” he didn’t get to finish his sentence as the needle was plunged into his arm. Before it was withdrawn, his world went dark.

“Take this, boy; you’re going to need it where you are going.”

The next time Zack was able to open his eyes, all he saw was blackness. He was no longer hanging upside down and was no longer chained. The only thing he could hear was the loud hum of some sort of engine. Mrs. Rivera was gone. He felt around the ground with his hands. All he felt was splintered wood. Then his hands bumped something small and round. Upon examining the object with his fingers, he was able to determine it was a flashlight. Turning it on, he saw that he was in a large crate. There was a jug of water in the corner. Before he could crawl to it, several large jolts sent him sprawling. The flashlight flew out of his hands and broke. Zack resigned himself to his fate.

As the search party continued looking for the lost teen, neither the rangers nor any of Zack’s friends gave more than a cursory glance to the low-flying airplane that passed overhead. Nor did any of them wonder about its cargo.