“Whatever you want”

Alright, a quick foreword before we begin the latest instalment of the Sam and Maia saga. My friend is adamant that if the person being kidnapped is okay with it, then it simply can’t count as a kidnapping and more just ‘blindfolded and tied up surprise going somewhere’. Hence, this is not my fill for the kidnapping square of my bingo, but I would still like to consider it an honorary kidnapping.

It was a Saturday night, and Sam found themself alone. A few weeks had passed since their last encounter with Maia, the burns having faded into small purple dots, and the gash in their shoulder healing thanks to their sister’s careful stitches.

She had been worried when she’d seen it, of course she had been, but they managed to explain it away as an occupational hazard, while she sighed and daubed at the wound with antiseptic.

They still kept that crumpled piece of paper that Maia had given them, and they reached for it absently, getting it out of the inside pocket of their jacket, and turning it over in their hands. They’d acted on the information and the bust had been successful, but still they couldn’t bring themself to throw it away. The number written at the bottom, in small, red letters had long been committed to memory, but they kept it still, tracing their fingers over the neat curves.

They were alone, with Alice visiting her girlfriend and John on a separate assignment, but it was more than that. The truth was, they were lonely. They wondered if it was the nature of their work, or just their personality that prevented them from making friends. So they sat on the floor in their room, holding their phone in their hands, a step away from dialling the number.

And the next thing they knew was a familiar voice in their ear. “Maia Chan, who wants me?”

“Hi, it’s me, Sam,” they began, more hesitantly than they’d meant to. Somehow, hearing the sound of her voice made them forget what they were going to say, so they fumbled uselessly for the right words.

From the other end of the line came Maia’s soft laugh. “I’ve been waiting for you to call. What do you want?”

The question caught Sam off guard, and they paused. What did they want? It was easier to list the things they didn’t want. They didn’t want to think or to work out their feelings. Why were they calling? They didn’t know themself.

“Whatever you want,” they finally spoke. “Whatever you want to give me.”

Another dark chuckle. “I don’t have any information for you.” A pause. “Unless you want something else from me.”

She didn’t need to say it for Sam to understand what she meant. “Yes, anything,” they replied quickly, before they had the chance to reconsider.

Maia’s voice turned cold. “What if I wanted to kill you?”

“You wouldn’t.” It wasn’t an answer, but a statement, said with conviction.

Another beat of silence. “Meet you in the park, by the pond?”, Maia finally asked, as casually as if the previous conversation had never even happened.

-

Sam stood completely still, looking out at the pond and the ducks that called it their home. It was getting dark, but in the twilight they could still see the leaves on the trees and the flowers in the grass.

They heard footsteps approaching from behind, but they didn’t turn around. “Maia,” they sighed.

“Sam,” came the response, before a dark cloth was wrapped around their eyes, blocking their sight. The fabric was pulled tight until it was almost uncomfortable, but they didn’t struggle, their only response a small smile.

“Are all the theatrics really necessary?”, they asked calmly.

“I don’t want you to know where I live,” came the reply. “Besides, it’s more fun this way, don’t you think?”

Somehow, Sam couldn’t argue with that, so they let themself be dragged along at a pace a little faster than they would have liked, tripping over rocks and steps in their path to Maia’s obvious amusement.

She stopped, and they heard a click as a car was opened, before they were unceremoniously shoved into the back seat. Their hands were tied together behind their back, making it impossible for them to remove the blindfold, not that they particularly wanted to in that moment anyway. It could have been worse. At least they weren’t in the boot.

The journey lasted a while, roads becoming bumpier as they went along, but Sam didn’t bother trying to figure out where they were heading. Maia was playing music, something mellow and sappy, about love or heartbreak, and they idly noticed that they were completely calm.

Eventually, the car stopped moving and they were yanked out again and shoved up some steps, through a door, then another door, and then down some more steps. They almost fell a few times, and they were sure that Maia was doing it on purpose, letting them go just a bit to watch them panic and then catching them before they actually collapse.

A rough hand on their shoulders shoved them down to their knees, and when the blindfold was ripped off, they found themself facing the concrete wall of what appeared to be a basement.

To be continued…