//------------------------------// // Chapter 17: Kidnapping 101 // Story: The Chronicles of Sunset: Crimson Promise // by VioletNightWriter //------------------------------// Filthy Rich stopped the car after about 3-4 hours of straight, non-stop driving. He opened the trunk, pulling Sunset out. He dragged her along a dirt path behind an old, run down, 17th-century farmhouse. Sunset looked at the cobblestone building. She noticed a slight shimmer around it. She realized that the location was spelled so it was not detected by any locator spell of any sort. She grimaced as she was forcefully put on her knees. "I have brought you to the first residence that I bought when I first turned. I expect you to be a proper house guest or you'll see the extra basement meant just for you," said Filthy Rich, standing in front of Sunset. Sunset craned her neck to look at Filthy Rich. She spat at his feet. She didn't take kindly to him kidnapping her then making demands. She didn't fear him, or his supposed 'torture dungeon'. "I won't take demands from someone who hurts my friends!" shouted Sunset. Within seconds she found her face on the dirt road. She could feel Filthy Rich's boot on her back. She groaned slightly as he pressed harder. She felt her spine reach its near breaking point. "I'd take that back or all Starlight will have is your corpse," said Filthy Rich, pressing slightly harder than before. Sunset yelled out in pain. "Ah! O-okay. I give in, I will abide by your rules." said Sunset through gritted teeth. Immediately, the pressure on her spine was gone and she was back on her feet. She glared at Filthy as he dragged her to a small room. She saw that the twin sized bed took up half the room space. "This is your room till I figure out what to do with you. I wouldn't want Starlight to get you back, at least not completely unharmed," said Filthy Rich. Sunset felt the rope around her wrists, fall. She realized that Filthy Rich had untied her. She thought about attempting to break his neck. But her spine was still in no condition for trying such an attempt. She sat on the bed, keeping her eyes fixated on Filthy Rich. "Thanks. I guess you're not such a bad host," said Sunset. Filthy Rich glared at her. He couldn't believe how she would behave with his graciousness. But then, he did kidnap her so maybe she harbored some tough feelings. "Well, I do my best to be a good host. Now, you'll remain locked in the room for most of the day. I will have someone deliver some animal blood for you. But, under no circumstances are you to try anything to escape or you'll see what I have for you." said Filthy Rich. Sunset sighed. She was grateful for the fact she wouldn't be bound. She agreed and Filthy Rich slammed the door shut and locked it. She laid down, her mind racing about Twilight. "I hope Twilight is okay." thought Sunset before she drifted off to sleep. A few hours later, Starlight and Twilight had canvassed the nearby area, looking for any sign of Sunset. They had been at it since noon. "Find anything?" asked Twilight when she saw Starlight stop in the middle of the road. Starlight pointed to the set tire tracks which were headed away from the house. She bent down, examining the tracks. She noticed that the tread came from one particular car. "Filthy Rich drove off this way," said Starlight, standing back up. Twilight looked at the tread then at Starlight. She wondered how Starlight could tell that was Filthy Rich's car instead of some random one. She studied the track further. She noticed the treads had a slight F and R shape to them. "I am guessing you see the F and R, huh?" asked Starlight. Twilight jumped a little as she heard Starlight's voice right behind her. She nodded. "Yeah. How is he able to do that? Isn't it against the Tire Tread Regulations?" asked Twilight. Starlight laughed. She knew Twilight had no understanding of how Filthy Rich worked his way around to get what he wanted. She placed her hand on Twilight's shoulder. "Let's say a lot of the money in his pockets goes towards breaking or find loopholes in the rules," replied Starlight. Twilight looked at Starlight. She had to chuckle as well. It seemed amazing the lengths that Filthy Rich would go to just for tire treads. She fixed her glasses as she and Starlight walked back to the house. "So, how exactly are we going to find Sunset? The tire tracks only go for about 20 feet then they disappeared. I didn't exactly see anything else indicating another trail." asked Twilight. Starlight sat down on the couch. Her thoughts were racing over the possibilities of where the tire tracks led. She knew if one place, but she wasn't too sure it still existed. She took out her laptop which was sitting on the table in front of her. She looked up the surrounding Everfree forest. Twilight looked at what Starlight was doing. She leaned in but she didn't want to be too close to Starlight. She wasn't sure if Starlight could handle her being close. Sensing what Twilight was thinking Starlight said, "You can sit next to me, I won't bite. I will let you know if you can't be near me." Twilight sat next to Starlight. She felt so nervous that she found it hard to breathe. She wasn't sure of what she could do. But she saw the screen of Starlight's laptop had an image of an area with vegetation around it. "What is that area?" asked Twilight. Starlight zoomed in on the area. She pointed to the area that had little to no vegetation in or on it. "That is what I believe to be the location of Filthy Rich's old farmhouse that he bought back in the 17th century," replied Starlight. Twilight stared at the screen. She tried to see what Starlight was talking about. But she saw nothing that indicated anything of a farmhouse, besides the almost barren spot in the middle of nowhere. Starlight zoomed in even farther, enhancing the image. She pointed to a slight outline of a shadow. Twilight saw that there was no possible reason for the shadow to be there. "Why's there a shadow there? I see nothing to cause it," asked Twilight. Starlight sat back against the couch. She looked at Twilight. "You can't see anything because Filthy Rich is smart. He cloaked the house so it can't be detected by satellite or locator spell either," replied Starlight. Twilight was shocked. She couldn't believe that Starlight just suggested that magic was real. She looked at the shadow and saw that it was indeed real. She blinked several times, making sure she wasn't seeing things. "Well, when are we going to locate this place?" asked Twilight. Starlight looked out the window. She saw the setting sun. She wondered that same thing. She didn't want to look too soon because Filthy Rich could be alerted to their presence. And too late, and Sunset might as well be dead. "We'll start looking tomorrow morning. We need to ensure that Filthy Rich will be a bit busy," replied Starlight. Twilight nodded. She stood up and yawned. She hadn't realized that she was so exhausted. But due to her and Starlight looking for Sunset for the majority of the afternoon, she was worn out. She looked at Starlight. "Mind if I ask for a place to sleep? I haven't really slept in a while," asked Twilight. Starlight got up and turned off her laptop as she placed it on the table. She led Twilight to Sunset's room. She opened her room, saying, "You can sleep here, but only if you want to." Twilight walked in, seeing Sunset's leather jacket. She picked up the half-folded jacket and placed it on the dresser. She then laid down. "Thank you, Starlight," said Twilight. Starlight smiled and quietly closed the door as she walked away. Meanwhile, at the Rich household, Filthy Rich was looking for his daughter. He finally found her in her room. He knocked on the door. He had a request for her. Standing back, he waited for her to answer the door. Diamond Tiara opened the door to see her father smiling at her. She smiled back at him. "Hey, daddy. What are you doing home so early?" asked Diamond Tiara. She and her mom had received a text from last night saying he would be at work and might not come at his usual time. She found it a little odd to receive that from him. "Well, I have a request for you to do," replied Filthy Rich. Diamond motioned for her dad to come in. She closed the door as she and her father walked into her room. They both sat on her bed. "What's the request, daddy?" asked Diamond Tiara. Filthy Rich smiled. He was happy to hear that his daughter was willing to accept the request. He pulled out a large portable freezer. He opened it and pulled out a bag of rabbit blood. He handed it to his daughter. Diamond Tiara looked at the blood. She was unaware that she was slightly drooling. She felt her canines lengthen a little as she stared at the blood. She felt an unsatisfiable hunger swell in her stomach. "W-what is this? And what exactly do want me to do with it?" asked Diamond Tiara. Filthy Rich caught sight of his daughter's fangs. He smiled to himself, happy to see his daughter developing well. "That, my dear, is fresh rabbit blood. I will have a limousine take you to a farmhouse I own. Once there, I want you to give this rabbit blood to Sunset. She is a vampire, and I want you two to talk to each other." replied Filthy Rich. Diamond Tiara looked at the blood, her hunger still lingering. She nodded. She would do what her father requested. She put the blood back in the freezer and said, "Okay, I will do that in two hours." Filthy Rich looked at his daughter and smiled. "Okay, dear. Just as long as you do what I have requested of you," said Filthy Rich, before he closed her door and left. Later that evening, at the farmhouse, Sunset was woken up by a knock on the door. She heard the door then open. She looked up as she saw a figure that seemed familiar to her. When she looked for a little longer, she realized that it was Filthy Rich's daughter, Diamond Tiara. "Hello, Sunset. I have your blood. Daddy couldn't bother with anyone else so I have to do this. He also said that I should talk to you. But I don't see why." said Diamond Tiara. Sunset caught the rabbit blood as Diamond Tiara threw the bag. She drank it, her hunger taking over. She didn't care that Diamond Tiara was there, watching her feed like an animal. Diamond Tiara had a look of disgust as she watched Sunset. She noticed that Sunset's cyan eyes were the first to shift. She saw a primal hunger in her eyes as she drank the blood. She stepped back, a sudden feeling of fear rising in the pit of her stomach. Sunset finished the bag. She threw the bag onto the floor, gasping for breath. She hadn't realized how bad her hunger was. She looked at Diamond Tiara, her fangs still dripping with the crimson liquid. She smiled, her red eyes showing a hint of kindness. "You know, I won't hurt you, right? Or has daddy told you to stay a safe distance away?" asked Sunset. Diamond Tiara rolled her eyes. She was annoyed at Sunset's attitude. She stepped up, getting within a few feet of Sunset. She looked at the bed, pondering her choice of sitting next to Sunset. "I am not afraid and my daddy didn't say anything about avoiding you. He just simply said to talk with you," replied Diamond Tiara. Sunset moved over a little on the bed, allowing Diamond Tiara to sit. She looked at the young girl. She couldn't help but wonder if she knew what was happening to her. She saw Diamond Tiara's eyes flash red without Diamond Tiara even registering it. "So...have you been running into walls or been able to lift things heavier than you could before?" asked Sunset. Diamond Tiara looked at Sunset, shocked and surprised. She wanted to know how Sunset figured out what happened to her. She sat a little farther, not sure that she wanted to be close to Sunset. "How did you know that?! I haven't even told my father that is happening," said Diamond Tiara. Sunset looked down, suddenly uncomfortable next to Diamond Tiara. She hadn't meant to push or invade Diamond Tiara's private life. She looked out the window, her thoughts running wild in her head. "Well, I doubt your father doesn't know. He's a vampire, like me, but much older and stronger. He had tried to make a half human/ half vampire mix a long while ago. You are his second attempt at it." said Sunset, her voice devoid of any emotion. Diamond Tiara staggered back off the wall. She couldn't believe what Sunset had just said. But a gut feeling told that Sunset that she was onto something. She remembered the newspaper articles from the 17th century. She also recalled her earlier behavior when she had first seen and held the blood bag. She backed out the door, saying, "I-I don't believe you!!" Sunset looked at Diamond Tiara just as she saw the door close and lock. She sighed. She knew that she could've handled that better. She looked out the window to see a frantic Diamond Tiara run into the limousine. She watched the car drive off in a cloud of dust. "Sorry..." was all Sunset said as she fell back to sleep.