I Joined My Own Kidnapping

There were three of them, and now that they'd taken off their masks, I could finally see their faces.

A middle-aged man. A guy about my age. And a young woman.

In my head, I assigned them labels: Big Guy, Skinny Guy, and Girl.

Big Guy dragged hard on his cigarette when he heard my question. "That bastard Sebastian Kessler's got a guilty conscience. Never shows his face in public. We haven't actually seen him.

"But the second he shows up, I'll know it's him!"

I wasn't convinced. "You sure about that?"

"Positive! A rotten bastard who's done nothing but evil his whole life? Just watch. Whoever comes and goes from his company in the fanciest car, looking like the biggest villain alive? That's him."

Skinny Guy nodded. "Agreed."

Girl chimed in. "Agreed. Now that everyone's here, can we eat?"

Was it just me, or was this the most slapdash kidnapping operation in history?

The four of us found a little diner nearby. Under the lights, I got a better look at my new associates.

Big Guy had the weathered build of a construction laborer. Skinny Guy was all bones, like he hadn't eaten a proper meal in months. And Girl looked seriously ill. Her face was white, and she couldn't stop coughing.

These were the violent criminals I'd been so afraid of? This was the kidnapping crew?

I'd already dialed 911. My thumb hovered over the call button. Somehow, I never pressed it. Instead, I ordered a bottle and joined them for a drink.

"Sounds like you all really hate Sebastian."

"You bet I do," Big Guy growled. "My little brother, Danny, fell to his death on one of his construction sites. They kept putting off the compensation. Wouldn't pay a cent, no matter how much we begged. His wife, Rachel, was so devastated she died too."

His jaw tightened. "You want to kidnap the man for money. Me? I want him dead. Someone has to answer for what happened to my brother and his family."

I shrank back. "Is it possible Sebastian didn't even know about it?"

"No way!" Girl snapped, breaking into another coughing fit. "He's a monster. I waited forever for a donor kidney, and he stole it from me!"

Her fingers shook around her glass. "I need the ransom money to get treatment overseas. I'm still young. I don't want to die."

That made even less sense. "But Sebastian doesn't have kidney disease, does he?"

Skinny Guy gave a bitter laugh. "How could he not? Man sleeps with anything that moves. Even his kidneys would give out eventually."

He drained a full glass of liquor and stormed off to the bathroom.

Big Guy leaned toward me. "Sebastian's keeping his fiancée as a mistress. Poor kid hasn't been right since."

He sighed. "I told him getting involved in a kidnapping over a woman wasn't worth it. But he's hopelessly in love. Wouldn't listen."

I slammed a hand on the table.

"Bullshit! Sebastian would never do that!"

Big Guy stared at me, then bristled. "Marty, I've thought you were acting funny all night. Why do you keep defending Sebastian?

"Have you forgotten? You buried yourself in debt buying an apartment that was never finished. Sebastian's people were behind the developer who took off with your money!

"You tried to take your own life more than once because of him. The only reason you joined our revenge crew was that you couldn't bear to die without making him pay."

He pointed at me. "So what's this? Cold feet? You're gonna leave us hanging?"

Only then did I remember.

I wasn't supposed to be Sebastian Kessler right now.

To them, I was Marty Phelps.

And judging by what they were saying, the real Marty hadn't shown up at all. Had he already given up and killed himself?

God. What a nightmare.

I let out a long sigh. "No, I'm not backing out."

Then I added, "Actually, I've already done some scouting. Tomorrow, I'll show you how we can get our hands on him."