The continuing story of the Disappearance of Jennifer Douglas

Hey this is a free story that I have been writing on my blog.  It is the very first draft.  I hope you enjoy it.  © SD Robb All Rights Reserved.

Wade sat inside the Starbucks sipping on dark roast cup of coffee.  He disliked the taste of the regular blend.  The dark roast had a smooth rick taste to it.  He sat at a table jotting notes down on his notepad.  Biding his time until the rush died down enough for him to ask a few questions.  Whoever this person was who kidnapped Jennifer had known much about her.

Normally in police work they would start with those closest to the person and work their way out, however, this case was different.  This was that rare, odd case where nobody saw anything and there are no clues left behind.  The coffee shop in many ways was a last ditch effort for hope.

The line was dying down and Wade saw his opportunity.  He jumped up and asked Kimberly at the cashier a question, “Hi, my name is Houston Wade and you have a customer that comes in here pretty regularly a tall blonde.  Oh here is a picture of her.  Have you noticed anything strange happening when she is here?”

“Um this is like my first day here or something.  Let me get my manager and she can like answer your question.”  Kimberly said in a valley girl tone.

“Yeah that would be like great.”  Wade responded mockingly, however, his joke was lost on Kimberly.

Beatrice McKinney had been a school teacher for many years was now retired, but went back to work after the stock crash of 2008.  Her and Fred (her husband) had lost much.  Instead of enjoying their golden years traveling, she rolled up her sleeves and went back to work.  Fred went back to work as well greeting customers at the local Walmart.

“Hi ma’am, my name is Houston Wade and I am a private investigator.  Have you seen this young lady?”  Wade held the picture of Jennifer out to Beatrice.

“Hmm…yup I sure have.  She comes in here almost everyday.  She orders the same thing too.  Something happened to her?”

“Yes as a matter of fact.  Have you ever noticed anyone out of the ordinary following her or staring at her?”

“Besides all the guys who turn their heads when she walks in?  No. Well I take that back there is an odd little fella that is usually here everyday sitting over in that far corner reading the paper.  But you can tell they are window shopping.”

“Window shopping?”

“Yes window shopping.  Waiting for that blonde girl to walk.  Then they just stare at her like she was a piece of meat.”

“Can you describe this person?”  Wade finally had a break in the case.

The continuing story of The Disappearance of Jennifer Douglas

This is the continuing story of The Disappearance of Jennifer Douglas. It is the very first draft. I hope you enjoy it. SD Robb © All Rights Reserved.

All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Jennifer could feel the darkness around her.  She was alone.  She tried to move her hands, but they were bound behind her back.  The rope was tight around her wrists.  She attempted to wiggle her hands in order to loosen the rope, but the thread started cutting her wrists.  She did not know where she was.  However, she could sense that she was moving.  Her legs were free and she used them to feel around the tiny space.  She moved her leg to the right and felt some soft and thin.  It felt a woman’s blouse.  She continued to move her legs around.  She knock into something that sounded like a basketball.  An over whelming feeling washed over her.  It was a sense of dread. She realized where she was, in the trunk of her own car.

The driver of Jennifer’s car could hear Jennifer’s screams while they drove.  They smiled in delight.  They had been planning this for a long time.  The countless hours watching her had paid off.  They knew that Jennifer was going to be surprised when she realized who they were.

Houston Wade knew it was now a race against time.  He also understood that the police would not get involved for another 20 hours, by then he feared it would be too late.  Houston drove to Jennifer’s work.  Women as cautious as Jennifer just do not go missing.  Somebody knew something, that he was positive of.

The office was a buzz that late afternoon when Houston Wade entered.  Mr. George Rupert ran a tight ship and pushed his employees toward excellence, but even he was crippled with worry for Jennifer.  He was munching on his finger nails when Wade walked into his office.

“Are that guy who they say is the boss around here?”  Wade asked.

Rupert was staring off into the distance when he heard Wade’s question.  ”Uh…yes.”

“Great, can you tell if any of your employees outside of Jennifer are here today?”

“Why do you ask that?  You don’t think one of the them had anything to do with this?”  Rupert said nervously.

“Well I gotta cover the basis.  So whose missing pops?”

Rupert looked out into the cubical corral and saw the empty desks of David Long and Martha Beecher.  Rupert handed Wade their names and addresses.

“Thanks pops you have been a real help.  Now I need to ask some of your employees some questions if you don’t mind.”

“Not at all.”

Wade stepped into the cubical corral and honed in on a distressed looking Patty Sinclair. He realized she had to know something more than just a normal coworker relationship.

“Excuse me miss.  Do you mind answering a few questions about Jennifer?”

Patty looked up at Wade through the tears running down her cheeks.   “I would be happy to help in any way I can.”

Wade could by the expression in her face that Patty felt some type of guilt for Jennifer’s disappearance.  ”How long have you known her?”

“For three years.  She worked beside me.”  Patty said through sniffles.

“Did you notice anything strange or anyone strange that she ever told you about?”

“No I…wait I do remember her telling me about a odd looking person who she had seen a few weeks ago.  She had gone to Starbucks like she does every day before work to get her Caramel Macchiato.  She just loved those drinks.”

“Did she say anything more like what the person looked like?”

“No. Well she said this person gave her the creeps but Jennifer was always friendly to everyone she met.  What troubled her was the fact she could not tell if the person was a man or a woman.”

“Thank you Patty if I need anything else I will let you know.”  Wade stepped away from Patty’s desk.  Wade was greatly troubled in his soul because he feared that it was possible that Jennifer did not know her attacker.  If that was the case then Jennifer did not have much time to live if she was not already dead.

The Disappearance of Jennifer Douglas

This is the continuing story about the disappearance of Jennifer Douglas.  SD Robb © All rights reserved.

All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Tom Douglas called the police.  His gut was telling him that something terrible had happened to his daughter.  The events of the past morning were out of character for Jennifer.  However, what Tom feared was confirmed by police.  He had to wait 24 hours in order to fill out the missing person’s report.  By that time Tom feared it would be too late.

“Are you sure there is nothing else I can do?”  Tom pleaded with the officer.

“Like I said before Mr. Douglas, Jennifer is a young girl and probably went on some spur of the moment trip.  Our policy with missing persons is to wait the 24 hour period.  We cannot use our resources to track down every person, who wonders off.  I understand you love her and want to know where she is but we have to make sure she is actually missing first.”  The officer stated.

“So there is nothing I can do?  We just sit here by the phone and hope she calls.”  Tom said bitterly.

“I’m sorry sir…wait.  There is someone I can recommend if it would make you feel better.  He is a private detective.  He is a bit of a loose cannon, but he gets results.  Would you be interested in speaking with him?”

“Absolutely!  Who is he?”

“His name is Houston Wade.”

Houston Wade was on his couch sleeping off his latest hangover.  He had been a New York City police officer for thirty years.  However, he was forced into early retirement and his wife left him.  To say it had been a bad year for Wade would be an under statement.  He had felt as if he needed a fresh start and decided to move Florida.

There was a knock at his door.  Wade peeked out from underneath the cover.  He knew the rent was not due and wondered who would be at his door at 2:00 PM.   However, the knocking continued and Wade was forced to leave the comfort of his couch and head for the door.

Tom Douglas had received Wade’s address from the police.  He knocked on Wade’s door and there was no response.  The office was in the seedy part of Orlando.  Tom began to wonder if he had made the right decision to come there.  He thought maybe his little girl had gone back down to Miami or even Las Vegas.  He shook his head, he knew she was missing and he was going to do whatever it took to get her back.

Wade opened his door, “Hello.  What do you want?”

Tom was taken aback by Wade’s abrasive nature, “Uh…I need your help.  One of the officers down at the station referred me to you.”

“Henderson?  Yeah that guy owes from our poker night a few weeks back.”  Wade started walking back to his desk and Tom was left standing by the doorway.  Wade’s office functioned more as an apartment.  It was not in the best of neighborhoods, however, Wade loved the local flavor and cheap rent.  Beer cans and a few bottles of Jack Daniels littered the floor.  A pizza box sat on his desk from the night before, which Wade reached in and grabbed a slice.  Tom worried that if he stepped in he might contract something terrible.

“Hey buddy, you going to just stand there all?  Come on in!”  Wade said as he waved Tom in.

Wade was munching on the slice pizza when he said, “So what can I do for you.”  Pieces of pizza fell out of his mouth as he spoke.

Tom was disgusted yet he needed the help.  ”Yes well my daughter was gone missing and the police will not do anything about it.”

Wade asked Tom questions about his daughter and her last known whereabouts.  After a few minutes Wade had a good idea of what could have happened.  Wade put down his napkin and told Tom his working theory, “Okay this is what I think could have happened.  I don’t buy into the crap that she went Vegas or Epcot Center.  She is a smart girl and very disciplined.  I think she had a mental breakdown or something funky like that either.  I think her boyfriend and you all love her and she feels that.  She had no reason to go anywhere.  I think she was abducted.  It could be someone she works with or someone who saw her somewhere and has been following her.  We have to fast if we are to ever find her.”

Continuing story of The Disappearance of Jennifer Douglas

This post is the third page of the free story.  SD Robb © All rights reserved.  I hope you enjoy it.

Patty Sinclair sat her desk and nervously watched the clock.  It was five minutes after 9 AM.  She glanced over to Jennifer’s desk and there was no sign of her.  She understand that Mr. Rupert loved punctuality. Jennifer had never been late before to work, in fact she regularly beat everyone including Mr. Rupert.

George Rupert stood in his office looking out at the desks.  He was chewing a piece of gum and giving it a good workout.  George had been a military man back in the day.  He had gone through several tours in Vietnam.   He was disciplined, which is why he thought of Jennifer like a daughter.  She seemed as if she could have been his daughter.  His stomach began uneasily churning.  He had a key made for her since she would routinely be at the office door waiting for him to arrive.

Several hours passed and still there was no sign of Jennifer.  A few phones calls had been made but there was no response.  Finally George had Patty call Jennifer’s family.  Surely someone had made contact with her.

Rachel Douglas was making preparations for a church bake sale for later that week when her phone rang.  Rachel and Jennifer’s dad, Tom, had been married for 27 years.  They were high school sweet hearts.  Tom was wrestler and Rachel played in the school marching band.  Tom routinely got to the high school football games early to secretly watch Rachel play.  Upon graduating from high school, Tom took a job with his father’s construction company and Rachel took a few courses at the community college.  By the end of that first summer after high school, they were engaged to be married.  They got married in a small out door wedding the next Spring.  A later they were blessed with Jennifer.  A year after Jennifer, they were blessed again with another little girl, Clara.  The Douglas’ raised their daughters to have small town values and to always be polite. Therefore, when the phone rang and it was Jennifer’s coworker Rachel began to worry about her daughter.

Tom was at a construction site when his phone rang.  At first he was not able to understand the caller.  He then realized it was Rachel and that something bad had happened.

“What is it sweetie?”  Tom asked.

“Jennifer’s work called and she has not come in today.  Plus I called her phone and it went straight to voicemail.”  Rachel said between tears.

Tom knew he had to calm Rachel down.  There was not any proof that Jennifer was missing or that something bad had happened.  ”Okay dearie, let me go run over there and see if I can find anything out.  Let’s not panic just yet.”  Tom’s words were reassuring to Rachel, however, Tom feared the worst.

Tom drove over to Jennifer’s apartment and broke just about every driving law imaginable.  He may have feared the worst, but also clung on to hope that Jennifer was sick or may have been for once wreck less and did something crazy like go to Las Vegas on a whim.  However, when he opened her apartment door he saw everything as it should be.  Her car was still gone.  Yet something did not add up.  Something was deadly wrong.

Continuing the Story

This is a continuation of an earlier post “The Disappearance of Jennifer Douglas.”  It is a free continuing story.  SD Robb © All Rights Reserved

Jennifer went to bed that night.  Her mind drifted to her hopes and dreams of marrying Brian.  The weekend they spent together in Miami had been so much fun.  They took a long walk on the beach to take in the beauty at sun down.  He held her hand and made promises to her for their future.  It was a precious moment for both of them.

It was late as Brian walked to his car.  It was warm Orlando evening.  He arrived at his car and noticed something or someone off in the distance behind one of the buildings.  It was difficult to see because it was dark in the parking lot.  Brian shrugged his shoulders.  He assumed it was some sort of animal.  Deer had been known to creep into surrounding communities of Orlando.  He started his car and drove away.  Little did Brian know that he had every right to be suspicious that night.

The car drove away and the person behind the building came out of the darkness.  It was early in the morning and they knew Jennifer would be up soon.  They checked their watch to double check they had the time and her routine down.  Jennifer was a cautious girl, but she stayed with her routine.

Brian was driving down the road and his gut was stirring in him.  He knew he had to call Jennifer.  Whatever it was that he saw was bothering him.  It did not make sense for a deer to be those apartments.  It had to be a person.  Someone up to no good.  Brian wanted to make sure Jennifer was safe.  He picked up the phone and called her.  Straight to voice mail.  He called again and again got the voicemail.  Finally he left a message.  He hoped that what he saw was nothing.

6 am comes early when a person has a great weekend.  For Jennifer it was usual wake up time.  She rubbed the sleep from eyes.  It was going to be a long day at work.  She got on her treed mill and began running.  The coffee pot made it’s usual four cups of coffee.  She got ready and was heading out the door at 7:30 am.  Traffic in Orlando had been getting worse each day and she knew she would have to get a move on if she was to be on time.

The weather was muggy that morning.  The humidity was difficult to escape.  A person had to get from their home to their car quickly to avoid sweating.  However, in the summer it was difficult to escape the weather.

Jennifer walked to her car, which was in the parking lot across from her apartment.  Most residents did not get out of their homes until 8:30 am at the very latest.  Jennifer was a real-go-getter and always arrived at work early and left late.  She cared about her career in Pharmaceutical sales.  She felt pride in knowing that she was helping people.  It was a career that was going to take her places.

She never saw it coming.  A quick blow to her head and the assailant placed her in her car.  It happened so quickly that Jennifer had no time to react.  Her car pulled out it’s place and turned the opposite direction of her work that day.

Profession or religion?

Reblogged from Cristian Mihai:

J.D. Salinger once wrote (in his novella, Seymour: An Introduction), "Do you know what I was smiling at? You wrote down that you were a writer by profession. It sounded to me like the loveliest euphemism I had ever heard. When was writing ever your profession? It's never been anything but your religion. Never. I'm a little over-excited now. Since it is your religion, do you know what you will be asked when you die?

Read more… 827 more words

I read this blog post and I had to reblog it. Great post from Christian!

The Disappearance of Jennifer Douglas

I hope you enjoy this short free story.  I am just sitting down and typing.  What comes out will be the story.  It is a first draft.  SD Robb© all rights reserved.

All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Jennifer and Brian were in love.  They had just come back to Orlando from a weekend get away in Miami beach.  They were engaged to be married.  The wedding was six months away.  Brian opened her door and took her hand as he helped Jennifer out of the car.  It was late at night and Jennifer had to go back to work the next day.

“I am really going to miss you.”  Brian said.

“Aw I am going to miss you too sweetie.”  Jennifer responded.

“I love you.  I fell more in love with you this weekend.”

“I know, me too.”  Jennifer said as they hugged each other.  Brian grabbed her bags and brought them up to her second floor apartment.  He set her bags down and came in for a kiss.  Brian had made Jennifer feel special.  He was a solid guy, who had strong character and values.  Jennifer adored his beautiful green eyes.  Brian loved Jennifer’s gorgeous long blonde hair.  Her long legs and pretty face made him weak in the knees.

Jennifer was the type of girl, who loved animals and she volunteered at an animal shelter most weekends.  While Brian was extremely attracted to Jennifer’s exterior it was her inside beauty that made him believe she would make an excellent partner.  Someone he could do life with.  Someone who would be the mother of their children.  He saw a lifetime of love and happiness in her eyes.

He kissed her.  The passion of young love filled their hearts as they embraced.  After a few moments, Brian said, “I will see you soon then?”

“Yes!  I can’t wait!”

“Let’s meet up for dinner Wednesday night.”

“Perfect.”  Jennifer said as they went their separate ways for the night.  It was the last time Brian would see Jennifer.