A Shocking Conclusion: Chapter 6 by x-Sidonus-x on DeviantArt (original) (raw)

"Hold off on any Police preparations." The Tormentor called out to their van techs. "Let's see if we can convince Mark's friend to rethink calling for help." Using Mark's cell they dialed a 4 digit code first to allow a direct connection to Jack's phone without removing the cellular block that had been put in place. They then dialed Jack's cell and waited for him to pick up.

Jack was just about to grab the neighbor's landline when his cell rang. His breath caught in his throat and he froze for a moment. With his right hand Jack reached into his back pocket and pulled out the ringing cell phone. Jack's heart sank as he checked the caller ID, it read 'Mark's Cell'. Jack knew who it was on the other end and it wasn't Mark. On the fourth ring Jack cautiously answered the phone. "Hullo?"

"Good evening Mr. McLoughlin." The voice was slow and precise with each word spoken.

"What 'ave ya done to Mark?" Jack felt nervous and his voice was shaky.

"Nothing, yet..." The voice paused, allowing the 'yet' to sink in. "But whether that continues to be the case will depend upon your level of cooperation."

"What do ya want me to do?" Jack had started to sweat, whatever this person wanted it was not going to be good.

"First, you will not call the police unless you wish for Mark to die. Second, you will tell this to the other people in the room with you. Third, you will return to Mark's house and surrender yourself to us within the next 10 minutes or Mark will die... Do you understand?" The voice paused to allow Jack time to respond.

Jack was terrified. 'They could be bluffing, but how am I to know?' He tried to think of how to get out of this situation but all other options could potentially get Mark killed. He couldn't risk Mark's life, not after all the effort he had put into trying to save him. Jack fell to his knees in defeat and placed a hand over his eyes as he leaned his head back. "Yeah..." Jack spoke softly with little emotion. "Yeah, I understand."

"Good. See you soon Jackieboy..." The line then went dead and Jack was left to his thoughts.

Jack felt sick to his stomach. What were they planning to do to him? 'I'm sorry Mark... I tried' He rose to his feet and turned around to see the two neighbors just staring at him, obviously waiting for an explanation. "It was the kidnapper... Dey told me not to call deh police else my friend would be killed. That warning goes for you as well. Dey also demanded for me to return to deh 'ouse."

"We're so sorry Jack..." Both of the neighbors gave Jack a sorrowful expression. "Stay strong. We'll try and help as best we can."

Jack gave them a weak smile as he left their house. His heart seemed to pound louder with every few steps he took back towards Mark's house. 'Hang in there Mark. If nothing else we'll at least suffer through this together...'

He stopped just short of Mark's front door. 'Well, here we go' Jack opened the door and slowly walked inside then closed the door behind him. As he turned away from the door someone forcefully grabbed him and placed a damp cloth over his mouth. Jack started to struggle and tried to cry out but he wasn't strong enough to break the person's grip and his screams were muffled by the cloth. While his consciousness began to fade Jack could hear a faint voice call through the fog.

"So glad you could join us, Jack... Mark will be so pleased to see you!" The Tormentor chuckled softly and then everything went dark...