Moments that Lead to You

This chapter may be a little choppy but hey it's here. Sorry for the long wait as usual.

Enjoy!

Suicide

With horror filled eyes N.Y. stared in the direction she and Lindsay had just come from. A stampeded of people rushed past them and without even realizing it both women were forced against a wall in the station. Suddenly N.Y. moved to make her way back in the main station, this shocked Lindsay from her stupor and she made a grab for N.Y.'s poncho.

"Wh-what are you doing!?" She cried over the noise of pure terror surrounding them.

"Chief…I think they…I need to go check on Chief!"

"Wait-you can't…O-okay then I'm coming with you!"

N.Y. turned on her then, "You can't do that kid, you gotta get out of here!"

"No! You can't leave me! I don't want to be left alone!"

"Those people are after you! This is your chance! You gotta take off now!"

"By myself!? I can't! I need you!"

N.Y. suddenly grabbed Lindsay by the shoulders in a tight grip that made Lindsay tense. "You wanted to be brave right!? It's time you learn! Right here, right now!"

Tears streamed down Lindsay's checks, "But…!?"

"What would your sister do!?"

Lindsay suddenly stilled as N.Y. continued, "I promise you nothing bad will happen! The police will be here soon! Think of the baby!" They shared one last desperate look, "You can do this! I promise!"

Reluctantly Lindsay nodded. N.Y. gave her one last tight smile and an assertive nod of her head before turning to race in the stampedes opposite direction. Lindsay took to running in with the crowd.

However Lindsay along with everyone else was cut short to find the main entrances blocked from so many people trying to escape at once. Fights were started as people tried to climb over each other to get to the doors, people were trampled on, it was a horrible scene of fear and desperation.

Lindsay stood back frightened of what to do next.

"This way over here!" Lindsay looked towards where the call came from and was just in time to find two older looking men rush off into a side exit. They were followed by a few more other people who had also seen their exit. Without any other option Lindsay followed into the side exit. It lead into a dimly lit hallway. Following the few people through this passage Lindsay found she was met with an option of stairways, one that led up and another that lead down. Lindsay watched the few people descend the stairs and made up her mind to follow down into an even darker passageway. But upon getting to the bottom of the stairs the young woman found herself flooded with relief. For she found the others rushing out a door marked, 'Emergency Exit'. Pushing her way out Lindsay found herself met with the oncoming of dusk and surrounded by unused train carts and a criss-cross of train tracks. The few people who were fortunate to find this escape talked in both worry and excitement as they made their way off.

"What the hell happened back there!?"

"Did you hear that!? I think there were gun shots!"

"Someone really needs to call the police!"

Lindsay looked around at the nearly deserted railway tracks which seemed to lead nowhere and the empty train carts looking abandoned and haunting. Breathing heavily and realizing she had thoroughly exerted herself Lindsay made her way to one of the carts and leaned against heavily. Her hands found their way to her stomach. Her face soured as she then took noticed a pain from her lower abdomen. Suddenly someone spoke,

"Are you alright miss?" Lindsay looked up to find a dark skinned woman looking at her with slight worry. "Please tell me you were not caught up in all that madness."

The woman was much older and tired looking with ebony hair pulled into an unkempt bun. She wore a uniform that Lindsay had seen before. A button up light blue blouse and black slacks.

Lindsay spoke, "My stomach…It hurts. It feels like I-ohhhh!?" Lindsay sunk to the graveled ground still leaning against the cart. The older woman kneeled with Lindsay in alarm.

"Hey, hey now honey! Calm down! You alright!"

"What's the matter with her?" Spoke a man. Lindsay looked up to find it was one of the older men she had first seen escaping toward the emergency exit.

The woman kneeling in front of Lindsay placed her hand on the blonde's forehead. She then checked her pulse. Then she gently placed a hand on Lindsay's stomach. Another man and a woman had joined in to see what the problem was. They all huddled looking at Lindsay with concerned interest.

The dark skinned lady said, "Nothing's wrong. Just too much excitement." To Lindsay she asked, "How far along are you?"

"Eight months." She answered in a daze.

The other woman asked, "What are you a doctor?"

"Nurse." Again to Lindsay she spoke, "This ain't good for you honey. Running around so close to your due date. Where are you traveling too?"

Still in her dazed state Lindsay answered without thinking, "I don't know…I don't know…I've been taken. They kidnapped me!" Suddenly in alarm she grabbed for the dark skinned lady's shoulders her voice now near hysteria, "They kidnapped me! Please help me! You have to help me!"

As though Lindsay had suddenly turned into a snake the older man suddenly started back, "Oh my…It's her! The reason for the shooting! It's all her fault! She ran off! It's her they're after!"

The other woman's hands came up to cover her mouth her eyes growing wide and the man she was with simply paled.

"I want nothing to do with her! This whole mess is all her fault!"

The woman spoke in a soft unsure whisper, "Don't say that…those gunshots…they could have been for anyone."

The man who stood close by her side placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, "No honey…they were meant for her." He looked to Lindsay with uncertainty, "Weren't they?"

Lindsay was crying now, "Help me!"

"Shh, shh, shh, honey the cops are on their way now." Spoke the dark skinned woman.

"Yes that's right!" Said the woman who looked to becoming more and more frightened though she tried to play it off, "The police will be here any minute and everything will be alright!"

"Can you stand?" Asked the man to Lindsay.

Lindsay tried with the assistance of the dark skinned woman but her stomach pain only seemed to get worse every time she tried. "It hurts." she gripped out tears streaming down her face.

"Why would anyone kidnap a pregnant woman?" Spoke the other woman in a barely there voice.

The older man stood away looking to Lindsay with resent, "Well I'm getting away from her. Look at the trouble she's caused!"

The dark skinned woman stood, "You're not going anywhere! You're staying here till I get her medical attention."

"I'm not doing anything! She nearly got me killed!"

The dark skinned woman glared before speaking lowly, "You should hear yourself. A pregnant lady has been kidnapped and is asking for help and the only one you're concerned about is yourself? I'm sure there's a special kind of hell for someone like you."

The older man's face grew red with anger but he said nothing.

In a tired voice Lindsay spoke, "Wait. Please don't leave me."

"I won't be gone long." Spoke the dark skinned woman turning back to Lindsay and kneeling before her again. "What's your name?"

Unfortunately Lindsay wasn't thinking, and instead of her own name she said, "Faith."

With a smile the lady said, "My name is Barbara. I'm going to go around to the front of the train station to get the police. They should be here by now."

"And we'll stay with you." Spoke the other lady, "My name is Elizabeth and this is my husband Tim. We won't let anything happen to you Faith." Her husband nodded giving Lindsay a smile for confirmation.

Lindsay nodded hesitantly and Barbara stood up to leave. She paused near the older man and said, "There's a thing called karma. You know where you do something good for someone and then something good happens to you in return. You should give that a try." And then she left.

A moment passed and Elizabeth kneeled down next to Lindsay speaking soft words of comfort. Through her pain Lindsay listened but really wished for Barbara to hurry up. The pain in her abdomen seemed to only get worse. Tim stood leaning against the train cart looking over Lindsay and his wife but seemed on edge and anxious. Which could also be said of the older man who now stood watching them all with resentment.

Tim spoke, "Faith, do you wanna give standing up another try?"

She shook her head, "I really just want Barbara to hurry with the police. It feels like the pain in my stomach is getting worse."

"She'll be here soon." Spoke Elizabeth, "Just try and relax. Okay?"

Lindsay forced a smile and nodded.

The older man said, "Well I just think you two are ridiculous!" gaining everyone's attention, "Staying with that girl is like choosing to commit suicide. It's not safe to be around her. Someone's looking for her and someone wants her dead."

Tim suddenly pushed himself of the cart and started after the older man, "If you wanna leave you can leave! But we don't need that now!"

The older man glared coolly at him then to Tim's wife. He said again, "You two are ridiculous." He moved to make his leave then stopped and added, "And I don't believe in karma."

He and Tim shared another glare then the older man turned but stopped short again. There was pretty woman standing before him with lovely green eyes and her short dark hair done up in a bob.

Esther said, "Good. You shouldn't." Then she took out her gun pointed it to his stunned face and shot. Tim barely had a chance to react before Esther simply redirected her gun a little to the side and shot him through the chest. Elizabeth at the very least had time to stand up and cower against the train cart with a scream. Another shot cut the scream short.

Elizabeth's body slumped down next to Lindsay. The frightened young woman took one look then fainted.

Her brown wig slipped off her head.

~*~A moments time back~*~

On Playa des Losers there was Lindsay, Bridgette, Trent, Eva, Harold, Courtney, Sadie, Beth, Cody, Tyler, Katie, Justin, Noah, and Ezekiel. Just last week DJ had been added to the bunch and by the end of this week there'd be another. Having lost the chance for a hundred thousand dollars wasn't as upsetting as you'd think it'd be. It was still upsetting of course but when you think about the fact that you'd have to still endure that horrible island in comparison to the beautiful and relaxing resort it didn't seem that bad to miss out on the money.

As of right now all the campers were by the pool talking laughing and dancing thanks to the boom box DJ had brought with him. With a smile on her face Lindsay and Tyler danced together to the upbeat music, her back to his chest she danced against him with a seductive move of her hips. Tyler, of course, was elated as his hands where placed against her hips and he moved along with her. The other campers danced as well loud and laughing with tropical drinks in their hands. The day was beautiful and promising and there was no one that could have spoiled it…

Almost.

Strange enough it was almost like she felt him before she noticed him.

Lindsay looked up to see Chris glaring at her just a little further off from the other side of the pool. Once her blue gaze was on him he turned away and left for the mess hall. Her face slightly heated Lindsay slowed her dancing to a stop.

What must this have looked like to him?

She had only been dancing.

Tyler gave her a quizzical look before placing his hands on her shoulders. "Everything okay?" He called over the loud music.

Lindsay looked to him over her shoulder. She gave a light nod but her face was still troubled.

…

Inside the mess hall a lovely buffet was set and Chris took to it knowing it was only a matter of time before the ex-campers came in for their share. A plate in one hand he made for the fresh fruit, starting with the strawberries which looked enticingly red and juicy.

Before he started to dish up he plopped one into his mouth. Delicious.

"Fix me a plate would you."

With a start Chris turned towards the entrance. His surprise melted away to dull annoyance.

"What are you doing here?" He spoke around his chewing.

Judy smiled her pale blonde hair falling past her shoulders to mid back in soft ringlets. Sunglasses placed appropriately on her face she stood in all her petite glory with a pencil skirt, blouse and a blazer. Of course Chris quickly understood this would not be a friendly visit. Judy usually had Chris meet her in her office or sometimes she would meet him at a gig she signed up for him but if his pint sized agent ever came to him…that usually meant trouble.

"Don't act so happy to see me." Judy said as she made her way to her client, "I'm just here to check up on you that's all. See how things are going."

"Things are going great Juds. Bye now."

"This is a nice set up." Judy said indicating the large buffet room. "I'm so glad I did everything in my power to get you this hosting job aren't you? Of course you are!" Judy now stood before him. Chris realized the heels she wore made just a few inches taller than usual. "As a matter of fact you are so grateful that you wouldn't dare do anything to mess up this gimmick and screw up all the hard work I had to go through to get you this job? Now would you!?" Inside the shaded buffet room Chris now realized Judy was not wearing sunglasses, just those fancy glasses that tinted in the sun. The tinting faded away and he was met with a brown glare.

Chris forced up a smile though his nerves were failing. The teeny tiny blond was like a teeny tiny Godzilla when she was angry…and he was already able to work out the reason for her visit.

"Listen Judy…You know Charles is a crackpot. Always working up stories to destroy me."

"Oh great you know why I'm here! Now I don't have to waste time explaining before I tear you limb for limb!"

Chris backed away "He writes a freakin' tabloid Judy no one's going to believe his garbage! I mean seriously 'Steamy new affair with one of the shows contestants!' It's a joke!"

She followed him step for step, "Well I'm not laughing! And that headline you just gave, yeah that's from his first tabloid! I don't give a shit about that! I'm here because of his second tabloid!"

Chris's nerve finally fell, "What?"

"Yes the second tabloid he wrote. The one that had a picture cover of you on the boat with Lindsay as it pulled off to take her away."

"Ohhhh…."

"You haven't read it? Oh my well allow me to fill you in on some of the juicy details!"

Chris glowered, "No, Juds, you don't have to do that."

She continued on, "I don't have the exact article on hand but I do remember the part that goes, 'Chris McClain rides off into the unset with the blonde bombshell to comfort and console. A kind and considerate move that the host has never done for any of the other contestants. It is truly obvious that something behind the scenes is going on between the two!' Then it went on with commentary from an 'unknown source' saying that you two were spotted out late nights together!"

That one gave Chris a start. Again someone spoke to Charles! "Unknown source!? From who!?"

"What the hell do you mean from who!? It's UNKNOWN!"

"Judy! Calm down and listen for a second! Why would I screw up my career for an underage fling!?"

"Oh I've seen that underage fling! I know exactly why you would do it!"

Chris huffed indignantly, "You must really think I'm stupid!"

Judy said nothing. She didn't have to, her accusing glare spoke volumes.

"I just said Charles has it out for me! You know this Judy! Why would you take his side over mine!?"

"Oh shut up Chris and stop trying to make yourself sound so victimized! Yes I know Charles hates your guts but…after what you did to him…sometimes his revenge seems justifiable." Chris stared at Judy with an even glare. He had to be very careful with his emotions. For a moment the sadistic host almost cracked a smile.

Judy continued, "Now I am on your side. But let's be honest Charles has never written a damaging article about you twice with the same story."

"So?" Chris sneered.

"'So' fool me one time shame on Charles. Fool me two times shame on you!"

Chris glowered before moving back towards the buffet he began filling up his plate. "I don't know what you want from me. Why can't you just ignore his stupid crap?"

Judy followed him persistently, "Because his stupid crap is selling that's why! Haven't you ever heard the saying: When there's someone to speak there's always going to be someone there to listen?"

Chris shot her an annoyed look, "Nope."

"Listen, you asked what I wanted right? Well what I want is for you to STAY. AWAY. From Lindsay!"

This time Chris couldn't help the smile that formed, just a beat from laughter. He gave an uncaring half shrug. "Fine, no problem."

His agent gave a dull glare riddled with doubt. "Seriously?"

"Yes. Seriously. If you want me to stay away from her I will."

"Chris I don-!?"

There was sound. Almost like a squeak that gained Chris and Judy's attention. Both looked toward the entrance to find a shocked and timid looking Lindsay standing there.

A long moment of awkward silence hung in the air.

Lindsay hesitantly spoke, "I…I'm sorry I just…I um…"

Chris glared at her, "You just came in here for some food Lindsay?"

"Yes!" Cried the blonde triumphantly, "Yes! Yes that's what I came in here for! Some food! Thank you Chip!"

Another moment of awkward silence hung in the air.

Judy said, "Weeell?"

Lindsay blinked, "Well what?"

The petite lady looked to Chris than back to Lindsay, "Aren't you going to get a plate?"

"Oh! Oh right of course! I um…" Actually Lindsay looked like she really wanted to leave but she reluctantly made her way toward the buffet where she grabbed a plate. She could feel the other blonde in the room glaring daggers into her back. Chris began to continue fixing his plate he moved closer beside Lindsay as he made his way through the fruit. Chris kept his calm while Lindsay moved with the grace of a malfunctioning robot. Chris paused,

"Ah Lindsay? Are you using the same tongs that are supposed to be for the melons on your salad?"

Lindsay looked down. The melon tong was missing and the salad tong was still there.

"Oh…I guess I am. Sorry…um here."

Chris reached over for the offered tongs. He allowed his fingers to brush unabashedly against Lindsay's the blonde gave a start and the tongs fell to the floor with a clatter.

"I-I'm so sorry!"

"Geez Lindsay can you be any more blonde!"

"Well you-! I mean I-!"

"Never mind I'll use the forks over here."

"Okay…" Lindsay spoke dejectedly as she continued with her salad.

Before Chris could continue with the melons he was yanked back suddenly and forced to turn around where he was met with a truly demonic Judy. She grabbed the front of his shirt and yanked him down to eye level before hissing,

"I saw that!"

Chris stared innocently, "Saw what?"

Angrily she continued to hiss, "You're killing yourself you know that!? Being with that girl is like committing suicide!"

"That's a little harsh Juds. I'm not gonna kill myself over-"

"Career suicide you idiot!"

Lindsay having heard snippets of their conversation turned to them. Curiously she spoke without thinking, "Are you, like, Chris's babysitter?"

Chris couldn't help himself he burst out laughing; Judy released the host and angrily screamed, "No I'm not his babysitter!"

Lindsay instantly shrank back, "Oh..I'm sorry…I'm sorry…"

Judy was nearly shaking now. Her angry brown stare traveled the blonde over. Lindsay was beautiful. She was just the type of girl Chris always went for. Tall slender and very curvy. Lindsay was a knockout.

Whereas she was tiny and flat as a bored. She couldn't walk into a room and garner attention with just a snap of the fingers no. No a girl like Judy had to earn it.

Simply put. Life was just plain unfair.

But that never stopped her. Judy never let women like Lindsay bring her down. On the contrary. She saw the challenge and accepted.

She turned a suddenly chilly glare to Chris, "I'll be back to check up on you. Religiously." Then she stormed off but paused at the door. She looked to Chris again, "I know this is a challenge for you but, try and remember what I told you."

And then she was gone.

Her plate full of salad Lindsay looked hesitantly to Chris to find him looking to her with amused eyes and a grin pulling at his lips.

"That. Was. Awesome!"

Lindsay didn't agree one bit. "Who was that lady?"

Chris laughed, "You called her my babysitter! Did you see the way she looked at you!? I thought she was gonna bite your head off!"

Lindsay looked indignant, "Who is she!? And why is she telling you to stay away from me!?"

"You heard that? How long were you in here?"

Lindsay glared, "Long enough!" She placed down her salad and turned to Chris with her hands on her hips, "Tell that lady not to talk to you that way and…and tell her not to worry about me!"

Chris's amusement only continued to grow, "Why didn't you tell her yourself?"

Lindsay's authority faltered slightly as she remembered the glare the other woman had given her. "Well who is she!?"

Thoroughly enjoying himself Chris asked, "Who do you think she is?"

Lindsay's blue gaze took on a rare glare, "Don't you screw with me mister TV host guy! Is she an old fling!? Are you seeing her now!? You tell me right now! I deserve to kno-mmm!?"

Having placed his own plate down Chris had moved towards the ranting blonde to pull her toward him and pressed his lips firmly against her own! In her shock Lindsay moved to place her hands against Chris's chest. She pushed against him effortlessly but it proved useless. One of Chris's hands wrapped around her neck steadying her while the other held her possessively against him. However under his demanding insistent kiss, against his powerful physique Lindsay couldn't completely remember why she wanted to get him away.

But just as soon as she began to respond Chris pulled away. He took a meaningful step away from her just as he normally does and looked to her with a gaze Lindsay was able to quickly identify by now. She pursed her bruised lips her face heating and her heart racing.

"Geez Lindsay," He spoke in a low tone, "why do you always have to get me worked up for?"

Shocked Lindsay stared with incredulous baby blue eyes, "Me?" she squeaked.

"Yeah you. Meet me by the pool later tonight I need to talk to you." Chris took another bite of strawberries before making his way toward the door.

Feeling very confused Lindsay cried out to him desperately, "But who is that woman!? Chris!"

At the sound of his real name Chris slowed to a stop then turned to Lindsay. She pouted adorably with still an anxious glance about her.

"What you gotta know everything? I'll tell you tonight when I see you."

Lindsay fumed angrily and Chris grinned,

"I still can't believe you called her my babysitter. Classic!"

Then he left out the mess hall laughing.

~*~Three weeks after Lindsay's Disappearance~*~

It was a small "Hmm" that broke through the early morning lighting in the messy living room.

Her brown hair in disarray Beth stared up at the ceiling with lazy half opened eyes. Where was she? How had she gotten here? With a soft sigh Beth closed her eyes again.

But in seconds her brown eyes snapped open. Beth realized she seriously didn't know where she was or how she got there! But that wasn't the worst of it. As bad as the 'Where' and 'How' was the 'Who' was the worst of it! For on both sides of her Beth found two men sleeping soundly beside her. Her breath stilled her brown eyes wide as dinner plates…

The scream that followed next pierced throughout the third floor of the apartment complex.

Paula burst out the bedroom door wearing only a t-shirt that left very little to imagination.

"What the hell is going on here? What's with the screaming!?" Her blue eyes widened in shock, "Knives!? What the fuck!?"

Beth sat up in the pullout couch bed looking thoroughly traumatized as Knives sat up on one side of her and Evan sat up on the other. Both looking tired and confused, Chris sat up from his makeshift bed on the floor also looking wiped out.

Noticing where he was Knives looked to Paula with a tired look, "Hey babe did we pick up hitchhikers coming back from the bar again?"

"No stupid! Those are the idiots that-!? Beth!?"

Beth looked to her lost best friends older sister, "Paula!? They found you!"

The small brunette clambered off the bed as Paula rushed toward her. Beth nearly fell from the makeshift bed but Paula was sure to catch her in a near embrace.

"What the hell are you doing here!?"

"Oh Paula! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! But I…I…!" Beth began to break down in tears, "I just can't come to terms with the fact that Lindsay…and I…I…" Her words became lost in her tears and a confused Paula pulled her completely into the hug.

"There, there…It's okay. Calm down girlie, it's alright…"

Evan frowned, "God how much did we drink last night…? Did I do anything to that geek?"

Chris grimaced, "Gross." Then, "How the hell do you two know each other?"

The two girls ignored the host as one continued to cry and the other continued to console. Evan said, "Well wasn't Beth Lindsay's best friend on the show? Maybe off the show she'd met Lindsay's sister."

Chris glowered before moving up off the floor, "Well if they're so tight, why couldn't she have gotten Paula to do this stupid runaround?"

The apartment Knives and Paula stayed in was small. From the living room to the kitchen it took Chris just a few short steps. Evan pulled himself off the bed muttering, "Cause no one was closer to Lindsay than you."

To which Chris looked to him in warning than back to Paula who was still too enthralled with an upset Beth to pay them any mind. Evan however ignored his cousin's warning look as he made his way past the kitchen, "Where's the bathroom at?"

"Door on the far left," called Knives, "First doors a closet!"

Evan gave a feeble wave before disappearing behind the bathroom door.

As Knives followed the host into the kitchen Chris asked, "You got anything to eat around here?"

Knives (who looked a little hung over himself) gave a tired smile and said, "We got 'Captain Crunch'."

Chris buried his head in his hands thinking about the night. His head pounded, he still wore the same clothes from yesterday, and he had slept on the floor of some cheap one bedroom apartment. This wasn't at all like the infamous Chris McClain…What the hell was going on?

"Anything else?" He grumbled.

Knives checked in the cabinets and the refrigerator, "Annnnd…'Captain Crunch'."

Was it really worth it? From the bathroom the sounds of Evan throwing up a lung sounded.

"'Captain Crunch' please."

He wasn't really hungry.

…

The story Chris and Beth told Paula and Knives next left the two staring in awe. They hadn't told everything of course. Chris still had a secret and Beth still had her promise of silence so they told the lovely sister just what she needed to hear. Evan lay back on the couch still trying to quell his upset stomach. He sat as an observer.

With wide blue eye's Paula said, "I can't believe you guys spoke to my mom and lived to tell about it."

Chris frowned, "Yeah…that wasn't easy…" He looked decisive for a moment before saying, "She…she says you're not even in Canada at the moment. That you're living in the states with some Aunt."

With a cold glare Paula said, "Really? She's not telling people I'm dead?"

Neither Chris or Beth knew what to say to this so Paula continued, "My mom's fucking crazy. She dotted on Lindsay like she was born prophet child or something. I told that bitch that I had a test to take the night Lindsay went missing. She said, 'Oh fine whatever go on and take your test.' She knew I was sleeping over at the school and coming home to Lindsay the next morning! So I get home and find Lindsay's room destroyed and suddenly she's down my fucking throat talking about how I never should have went to take my test in the first place! How this is all my fault for leaving Lindsay alone! So I'm like, 'To hell with her!' Because she acts like she's the only one who cares about Lindsay! Lindsay is my baby sister! My only sister! And to blame this on me! To say that it's my fault and act like I'm some heartless bitch who doesn't even care…!" Tears began to form in Paula's eyes but she wiped them fiercely away. In a trembling voice she finished, "You know it's bad…when half the world thinks you've done something wrong and won't believe you when you tell them it's not true…but when it's your own mom…"

Knives placed a hand on Paula's own. The blonde slammed her other hand down in a fist against the table and finished, "And that's why I say 'To hell with her!' I want nothing more to do with the bitch!"

Beth stared with wide eyes while Chris lowered his gaze. Funny how he could relate…

Paula said, "So…I haven't been home since. And I don't plan on going home anytime soon." She allowed a curious gaze to shift between the host and his young companion, "Buuuut…I know you two didn't come all the way here to hear me chatter on about my sucky life."

Chris raised his gaze back to Paula as she shrugged, "You went through all this trouble to find me. What do you want?"

For a moment nothing was said. Both Chris nor Beth knew how to carry on with Lindsay's older sister. How to ask her their questions. Slowly the host started,

"Well…I…we…kinda hit a snag. We're at a dead end Paula and we were hoping there might be something you could tell us that-"

"Who are you fooling?" Paula asked with an incredulous look, "Like I haven't given all the information I know to police who came before you looking for Lindsay. That was weeks ago. They haven't found my sister yet obviously. Why in the hell should it be different for you?"

For a moment Chris could only stare into those beautiful eyes that reminded him of Lindsay. He spoke, "We just want to try."

"Why?"

Chris became uncomfortable, luckily Beth spoke up, "She's our friend Paula and your sister."

"She may be my sister and your friend." Her testing glare remained on Chris, "But you…why do you care?"

Chris saw he couldn't get out of it, "She's my employee."

Paula's brows furrowed, "Employee? She's a contestant on your stupid show! She goes before a camera acting goofy and blonde and you get ratings and a fat paycheck off of it! But Lindsay doesn't work for you!"

"Fine!" Chris snapped, "She's a popular character on my show and I need her to keep those ratings up and to continue to keep getting my fat paycheck! Is that what you want to hear!?"

Paula slammed her hand on the table as she stood angrily, "Fuck you! Get out before I kick your ass again!"

Chris stood angrily as well, "I'm looking for your sister! Which is much more than what you're doing! Sitting around on your ass feeling sorry for yourself!" Chris leaned in and spoke lowly, "I saw the posters. Almost everyone here thinks your guilty even your own mother won't talk to you and you don't want to take the time out to give a little info that might possibly help your sister? Maybe you did fucking kill her!"

Paula was rigid her eyes wide and angry. Her mouth moved…but no sound came out. She stood in shock unable to think of anything to say.

When a moment of silence passed Knives stood up and left the three. Beth glared angrily at Chris before reaching across the table to take hold of Paula's hand.

To the blond Beth soothingly spoke, "Paula, we were up and about all day yesterday looking for any and all clues that the cops could have missed. We're a little on edge. He didn't mean that."

Paula's and Chris's gaze never left the other. They continued to glare with fiery hate.

Slowly the blonde backed away pulling her hand from Beth's light hold.

Still glaring at Chris she softly spoke, "You're not going to find her. The only reason Lindsay was taken was because of all the exposure you gave her on that retarded show. You said Lindsay was a popular character right? It was probably some psycho fan that took her away. Because you just had to have her on your show, you had to make her a star." In a low and dark tone she said, "This is all your fault. You killed Lindsay."

"Please stop saying that!" Beth cried out covering her ears as tears pooled in her eyes.

Chris and Paula ignored her as they continued their dagger glares.

Evan lay back casually on the couch watched with an amused and mean smirk.

Knives returned with a medium sized box.

He dropped it in front of Chris and this ended the hateful glaring contest.

Chris looked to the box, "What's this?" He asked in a low barely there tone.

Knives said, "It's Paula's."

The blonde having recognized the box moved away to her counter where she retrieved a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. She was suddenly on nerves and jittery.

Chris noticed her behavior but looked back to Knives, "What is it?"

The long haired drunk gave a smile that screamed recovering alcoholic, "What you asked for I think."

Chris looked back to Paula but her back was turned to him. He sat back down and pulled the box toward him. Beth scooted closer to him looking with interest.

The host looked back to Paula one last time thinking she might stop him but she didn't.

Chris realized his heart was pounding. Almost as though expecting to have Lindsay's exact location within the box, right there, within his grasps.

With sweaty hands he opened the box.

Both he and Beth looked in.

Their hopefulness turned into confusion…then upon realizing what they were truly looking at their gazes turned to incredulous shock. Chris swore his heart stopped cold.

Softly Beth breathed, "Oh my god…"

Chris raised his incredulous gaze from the contents in the box to settle again on Paula. Tears were falling from her face as the smoke from the cigarette flowed about her in a graceful curtain.

At his expression a mean smile pulled on her lips. Chris wasn't sure but it felt like his heart was still stalled. Like he couldn't get it going again from the shock. Was he having a panic attack? Maybe even a heart attack? The host didn't know how much more of this he could take. Judy had been right; being with Lindsay really was like committing suicide.

Paula said, "There you go Mr. McClain…Lets see you find my sister now."

~TBC~

Keep up with the clues. Things will be explained with the next chapter.