When a Life Is Worth Only 100 Bucks
Mom and I board a flight to Fangoria to visit Alicia Carter, my wife. She's a special forces soldier who's here on a peacekeeping mission in this foreign country.
But the moment we walk out of the airport, we're ambushed by a group of kidnappers. One of them holds a gun to Mom's head and says, "If you don't give us the ransom in three days, we'll blow her head off!"
In a panic, I make a video call to Alicia, my hands shaking as I beg her to help me.
"Calm down, honey. I'll put in a request to lead a rescue mission. We'll save her within 24 hours!"
But the next day, I keep failing to get in touch with Alicia. After I blow up her phone with multiple calls, one finally connects. Amid her rushed panting, she tells me, "Sorry, honey. I just got assigned to an urgent escort mission. You guys just hang in there. I've arranged for the local authorities to—"
Her voice is abruptly cut off by a familiar male voice. "Alicia! Thank goodness you came over just to pick me up. I didn't have to spend 100 dollars on a cab after all! That cab driver didn't even have a license, and I can't believe he tried to ask for more money…"
The three-day deadline passes, and the kidnappers keep their word, letting me hear the gunshot myself.
As I clutch Mom's cold, dead body, Alicia calls me out of nowhere.
"Hey, honey. I just completed the escort mission. How are things on your end? Have the kidnappers released her?"
I look down at Mom. Her eyes will never open again. I gently wipe the blood off her face as I reply to Alicia in an eerily calm voice, "Yeah. They have."