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newspaper. She could see the headlines clearly, “Texas Senator’s beloved Bluebell abducted.” The vision made her cringe.
    Jessica sighed and wriggled around until she could peer out the window. She needed some clue as to where they were. Now that they hummed along a paved road with the headlights back on, she hoped to spot a sign. This time she wouldn’t sleep.
    She strained her eyes through the night, but could see little. The occasional set of headlights from an oncoming car illuminated the van for a moment, but then left them once again in darkness. The men up front conversed quietly and glanced back at them often. The guard in the back of the van slept, along with Ashley, Megan and Gilbert.
    During the brief bits of light, she would glance at Jack. He was awake, but didn’t look in her direction. He studied the men, the van and the scenery. Something about the way he watched everything made her think he was developing a plan of escape, which they desperately needed. They had to get away before Gilbert’s memory was triggered or she had no doubt they would all die.

    As dawn approached she caught a glimpse of a sign welcoming them to Chiapas . She looked around at the occupants. All were still asleep except for Jack. Their eyes met and there was understanding. They were watching, thinking and neither had any intention of following Gilbert’s insistence on doing nothing. Jessica knew her reasons and she wondered about Jack’s, but if she had found an ally, she wouldn’t question his motives. Too much was at stake to sit back, do nothing and wait for inevitable death.

Chapter Six         
     
    The kidnappers drove until Jessica’s stomach grumbled, indicating it was around noon. They hadn’t eaten since early evening the night before and she was famished. She hadn’t seen a town for hours and they had just left the pavement again, so any dreams of grabbing a quick bite in an establishment with a restroom with running water had vanished.
    The van bounced down the pot-hole riddled dusty road for about an hour before it came to a halt in front of a run-down building. The ground around the house was cleared of vegetation, allowing the sun to bake the ground, and Jessica feared the small house would be as hot as a sauna.
    They waited until the back door of the van was opened and each occupant scrambled out of the vehicle as quickly as they could to avoid being pulled out as Jessica had suffered at the last stop. As before, they were marched single-file to the house and locked in a dimly-lit dirty room.
    “Does anyone here speak English?” Gilbert demanded. “Someone here has to speak English. If we could just find out what you want, I’m sure we can work something out. Damn it! I know one of you idiots must understand me.”
    One of the gunmen walked up to Gilbert and backhanded him so hard that the heavy man crashed to the wooden floor with a solid thud. He crawled to his hands and knees and then staggered to his feet, rubbing his jaw.
    “So you must be the one who understands English? Just tell me what you want and I’ll help you get it.”
    “We will send our demands when we are ready. First, we make your families and your government fear for your safety. Then they will be eager to cooperate. You will keep quiet, do as you are told or you will die.” The man slammed the door shut and locked it.
    Jessica paced the room until she could feel everyone’s eyes following her. She stopped at the one window in the room and stared out. There were bars over the opening, but it offered more of a view of the area than the previous night’s room had. They were surrounded by jungle, broken only by the narrow dirt road they had arrived on. The trees were densely spaced and leafy, preventing her eyes from seeing much further than the clearing encircling the small house and the lone van.
    After Gilbert sat down and Ashley and Megan joined him, Jessica left the window and walked to Jack who was sitting on the