The Kidnapping

By Shervin Ira Wood

          The thing about living on a small island is the lack of excitement. The monotony is contagious and spreads quickly and is accepted as normal. The absence of crime is taken for granted.

          Philip and his wife, neither of whom were born on the island, were very happy nonetheless. They had a thriving business, a nice new canal front home, and more than enough activity from Mitzi their one and a half year old baby girl.

           In order to give the little angel something interesting to do and see every waking moment of her life, they had formed a routine for activities.

           Thursday night was their yogurt night. The Yogurt Store was located about ten miles away from their home, but a good thirty-five minute drive because of the winding two-lane island roads.

          On this particular Thursday night, Phillip and his family arrived at The Yogurt Store around seven-thirty. Rather than simply driving into the parking space, Phillip drove past the space and reversed in, the front of the Mercury Sable facing the exit.

          They had their yogurt, bought the early edition newspaper, and decided to leave. Usually Phillip drove and his wife sat directly behind him with Mitzi, who was safely strapped into her special baby car seat.

          When they reached the car, Phillip opened the rear door for his wife and then seated himself behind the wheel, started the motor, and put the air conditioner on high. After several minutes of fumbling with the baby seat, his wife finally slammed the door behind him, and Phillip drove off.

           Headlines in the paper had Phillip slightly annoyed tonight. As he drove he occasionally commented that the stupid politicians were ruining the island. When he reached their cell phone store he pulled into the dark and deserted parking lot and told his wife that he would be back in a minute.

           Once inside he could not find the invoices that he had planned to take home and after about ten minutes he gave up and returned to the car. He started the motor and turned around to apologize to his wife for the delay.

          Mitzi sat alone in the back of the car, strapped safely into her seat. Her eyes were wide and bright in the dark, and she had a puzzled look on her face, a look Phillip had never seen before.

          "Mama? Mama?"

          "Where is your Mommy?"

          "Mama? Mama?"

          "Rhonda?"

          " What kind of joke is this?

          " Rhonda? Rhonda?"

          Phillip raised his voice slightly alarmed, and got out of the car and walked around it.  Rhonda was not one to play games. Never before had she done anything like this.

          "O.K. Good-night. If you want to play games!" Phillip said loudly and then got in the car and drove out of the parking lot. He drove east about a block and turned and went back.

          "That should teach you!" he said confidently as he got out of the car.

          But Rhonda was nowhere to be found, just a dark empty parking lot.

          Then Phillip noticed someone standing outside of the restaurant on the lot next door. He took his now very scared looking daughter into his arms and comforted her.

          "We'll soon find Mommy," he told her, as he approached the man.

          "Did you see anybody around my parking lot?"

          "Yes… A car drove out a few minutes ago"

          "Was it my car that is now parked right there?"

          "Yes I think it was" replied the man.

          " Oh my God! Thank you sir."

          Phillip was now in a state of alarm. He returned to the store and started shouting for Rhonda. After a few minutes he carried Mitzi into the store and called 999, the local number for Police.

          "999 - Police Emergency!"

          "This is Philip from Philip's Mobile Phone Store".

          " My wife is missing…. I left her in the car and now she is missing… Please send some Police fast!"

          " What is your location?"

          "Phillip's Mobile Phone Store… Please send some Police now!  Please hurry!"

          "What is your full name and how old are you?"

          "Don't be a fxxxxxx idiot! Send Police now! My wife is missing… Kidnapped! Probably being raped this minute… Send Police now! Please?"

          "O.K. then. Patrol Officers should be there soon." The shaken but concerned police lady politely replied.

           Phillip put down the phone and then dialed his brother. In terse words he broke the news to his brother as the blue flashing lights of the Police car entered the parking lot. The young British Policeman and his Jamaican counterpart approached pad and pen in hand.

          "What is you wife's name?"

          "Rhonda."

          "How old is she?"

          "My wife is missing. Go get your flashlights and look in the bushes across the road!"  Phillip tensely instructed.

          The Jamaican returned to the car and the 'Limey' started looking around the parking lot in the dark. Phillip returned inside the store with his crying daughter and dialed 999.

          "Police Emergency!" the same police voice answered.

          "This is Philip again… Please send some sensible Police… My wife is missing… Please send some more Police! These two don’t have any sense!"

          "O.k. More Police are on their way."

          Philip tried to comfort the baby. "Mommy will soon come he said as softly as his frightened voice could lower"

          "Mama? Mama?"

           Then more Police arrived. Then more.

          The first Jamaican Police came back with his pad and pen in his hands.

          "Were you having any trouble?"

          "Trouble? What do you mean by that?"  Philip answered in an annoyed voice.

          "Were you all having any trouble at home?"

          "Don’t be a fxxxxxx idiot!!"

          "My wife is missing!"

           "Kidnapped!"

           "Probably being raped this minute!"

          "Get your flashlight and go search the bushes across the road!"

          Philip was totally hysterical by now. He barked orders at several of the Police to go search the bushes. He tried to comfort little Mitzi at the same time.

           His brother and sister arrived. His sister took Mitzi in her arms. His brother hurriedly removed all of the flashlights from the store shelves. Then he opened the packs of flashlight batteries on the counter and began handing out the flashlights to friends and total strangers who had now gathered to join in the search. The feeling of despair was hanging in the air.

          Philip knew that at this very minute his wife was probably being raped, or killed.

          By now at least ten Police cars had arrived and Philip continued screaming orders at them. Their chain of command had totally disintegrated.

           Philip's hysteria had them scrambling in all directions combing the tall bushes opposite the store, their many flashlights augmented by the headlights of three police cars which they had parked across the road blocking traffic and facing the bushes.

           Traffic was lined up bumper to bumper in both directions and people were leaving their cars further down the road and walking to the scene.

          The bushes were full of bobbing flashlights as people joined the Police in the search. Someone kept shouting

          "Hellooo?  Hellooo? Helloooooo?"

          Then the phone in the store rang and was answered by Philip's sister.

          "Philip. Come quick it is Rhonda!"

          The Jamaican Police followed Philip into the store.

          "Where are you?" Philip asked into the phone. He felt completely disoriented, and frightened to hear what horrible thing had happened to precious Rhonda."

          "I am at the Yogurt Store - come and get me!" Said Rhonda in a in a very tired and annoyed voice.

          "Are you ok?"

          "Yes I'm ok."

          The Jamaican Police went back outside and starting shouting to everyone.

          "They have found her! She is at the Yogurt Store."

          Some of the Police ran to their cars and left the parking lot with their tires screeching, sirens screaming and blue lights flashing.

          "Get in the back seat!" The Jamaican Police ordered, and Philip got in the backseat with the baby in his arms. They headed for the Yogurt Store with the siren blaring. The radio in the Police car was deafening as they communicated with each other and the Jamaican Policeman excitedly told his fellow officers"

 "Kidnap victim Located!"

" Kidnap victim located!"

          The parking lot was full of Police cars and flashing lights and Rhonda was completely surrounded by uniforms when Philip and Mitzi arrived. He rushed through the crowd to hug her, almost dropping poor little Mitzi from his arms.

          "You drove out and left me at the Yogurt Store and I've been waiting and waiting. Rhonda began, looking very frightened by all of the commotion and excited policemen.

           "I put Mitzi in her car seat and was walking around the back of the car to get in the front with you when you drove off like a bandit out of hell!"

          " I was running behind the car and shouting, but you didn't hear me, you just continued driving away."

          "And I was calling and calling your cell phone and our house phone and you did not answer."

          The Police began to smirk and then started laughing when they understood what had happened.

          At least the first kidnapping mystery on the island had been successfully solved.

          And for one night, the boredom of the island was shattered with excitement - thanks to Philip and Rhonda.