EJ tried without success to focus on his work for the day. It was bothering him that he hadn’t heard from his wife or his daughter. They both usually called to find out how his day was going. Although he felt silly for worrying he decided that he was going to check up on them. He tried calling Sami on her cell phone but it just rang and went to voicemail. He didn’t want to panic so he just left her a message, “Hello darling it’s me. Just calling to check on my two favorite girls. You are probably up to your neck in fabric swatches eh. Call me when you get this. I love you.”

He had a feeling of uneasiness that he just couldn’t shake. He tried Ali’s cell and it went straight to voicemail and no one answered at the office. “Damn it!” he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was terribly wrong so he made up his mind to go looking for them, fully expecting the wrath of his wife for being a worrywart. He grabbed his suit jacket and told his secretary as he hurried past her desk that he was leaving for the day and to reschedule all appointments. He glanced at his watch as he waited for the valet to pull the car around.He kept trying to call Sami as he drove towards Ali’s office, getting more and more frustrated when the calls remained unanswered.

He pulled up in front of Ali’s office and was alarmed to see that the door was ajar. He practically leapt from the car and ran into the office calling for Samantha and Ali. He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw the still form of his wife on the floor, packages scattered all around. He ran to her side and drew her into his arms. He brushed the hair away from her face, “Samantha? Darling, please wake up! What happened? Ali? Sweetheart where are you?” He checked to make sure she was breathing and was relieved that her breathing was calm, as if she was asleep, what alarmed him was the fact that he could not rouse her. He tapped her cheeks gently and called her name but she would not respond. He scooped her up in his arms and placed her gently in the car before racing to the hospital. 

He probably broke several laws on the way to the hospital but he didn’t care. He kept trying to rouse her from unconsciousness. His mind was racing, trying to process a million things at once. What could have happened to cause Samantha to faint? Where was Ali and why would she leave her mother that way? He glanced over at his wife she looked like an angel when she slept. He reached over and shook her leg, “Darling please” he begged, “please wake up sweetheart.” Her unresponsiveness urged him to drive faster.

He practically ran into the hospital emergency room with Samantha in his arms screaming at anyone within earshot that she needed help. Thankfully his sister, Lexie, saw him run in and met him with a gurney. He carefully laid Samantha on the bed.  Lexie looked at EJ with concern in her eyes, “Tell me what happened.” The fear in his eyes tore at Lexie’s heart, EJ explained that when he couldn’t reach Samantha or Ali on the phone that he went searching for them. “I don’t know what happened. I found her collapsed on the floor and I can’t find my daughter…” He put his face into his hands. “Please. I can’t lose them.”

Lexie rubbed his back reassuringly, “I’ll do everything I can to figure out what’s wrong with Sami. You should call Abe and have the police look for Ali.” EJ nodded in agreement. They wheeled Samantha into a room to do some tests. He decided to try to call Ali again.He sighed in aggravation when it went to voicemail again, “Ali it’s your father again. Please call me back as soon as you get this message. I have your mother at the hospital and I want to know what the hell happened today. Call me. I love you.” He snapped the cell phone closed and slid it into his pocket as he made his way back to Sami’s side.

Lexie was checking her vitals when he walked in. “Any change?” he asked. Lexie shook her head no, “I don’t understand it. All her tests came back normal. She should be awake. I want you to keep trying to reach her. Whatever happened must have been very traumatic to keep her in this state. I’ll be back in a little bit to check on her.” EJ gazed at his wife with worry. He took her hand and began tracing her skin with his thumb. He spoke at nearly a whisper, “Samantha, please come back to me.”

 Johnny tired of hearing Ali’s phone ring incessantly. He glanced over at his sister, bound and gagged, on a bed in the corner. “Well well well if you aren’t the popular one. Let’s see who’s trying to reach you little sister.” Ali tried desperately to free herself from the ropes that bound her but it was useless. Every movement sent a wave of pain down her arms as the ropes chafed her wrists. She tried hard not to allow her fear to show in her eyes but she knew that her brother would sense it.

Johnny opened the phone and perused the missed call log, “Aww how sweet! Daddy is the one calling you.” She looked up sharply, begging with her eyes for him remove her restraints. He listened to her messages and then snapped the phone closed. “Seems that mother is in the hospital. I suppose that I should call and check on her eh.” Ali shook her head no and tried to scream through the cloth that gagged her not to call but it was no use, the cloth muffled her words and her obvious distress seemed to delight her brother. She just didn’t want her father to find out this way.

 EJ felt the vibration of his phone and he looked on the caller ID and saw his daughter’s name, “Thank God.” He breathed a sigh of relief. “Ali! Where have you been?”He heard an unfamiliar laugh on the other end of the line, “Who the hell is this?! Where is my daughter?!” he demanded.Johnny laughed again, “Now really, Father, is that any way to speak with your son?” He promptly hung up before EJ could respond. EJ dropped the phone and it clattered on the floor, “MY GOD! Johnny!”