“It’s good to see you back!” She stated.

“Why you’re a sight for sore eyes. Come; sit over here on the couch.” I showed her over to there, and we sat down.

“How’s Tracy?”

“She’s sleeping right now. She’s been deprogrammed, but she can’t remember me.”

“Ooo, that’s going to be rough, we still haven’t got anything on the B&O. I’ve got their record books, and so far everything’s legitimate.”

“Well, keep looking. There’s gotta be something somewhere. What’s today?”

“Tuesday.”

“Oh. We’ve gotta be at Tracy’s neighbor’s apartment tomorrow to stop this horrible cycle.”

“Check.” She said. We talked for a while, then she left, and I went to bed.

That night, I dreamed of Tracy coming into my room with a dagger positioned over my chest. I woke up in shock to find nothing there. This reprogramming had me on edge. I couldn’t get to sleep all that night.

The next morning, most of the girls found where they lived, were deprogrammed, and after a lot of thanks, bid me farewell. They returned to their husbands, boyfriends, family, and jobs. I on the other hand, had a task yet to be accomplished. The Case of the Disappearing Damsel in Distress was not over yet! Not by a long shot! That day I went inside Tracy’s room, where Stacey was still extending her watch care over her. Tracy was up and dressed. I complemented her on her clothes, and offered my arm to her. She cordially took it and we went downstairs for breakfast.

Stacey and I finished early, and went into the living room to talk. “She doesn’t remember much.” Stacey commented. “You must keep her with you, where ever you go. Don’t let her out of your sight.”

“I understand. How long do you think it will take?”

“Weeks– maybe months. The important thing is prayer. God is the only one who can bring back her memory.” She left, and I returned to the table. This would be a difficult experience for me. I questioned myself if I was ready for it. That day we spent mostly chatting making small talk. I talked about the past, and she kept saying that she didn’t remember it. We ate lunch. I became more and more fatigued.

That afternoon, the most discouraging news came to me. The phone rang, and Karin called me once again. “Adam! The B&O is closing down!”

“What?!?”

“Yes, that means that if there is something going on, we’ll never find it.”

“Send Noah down right away. Tell him to get every last bit of information he can. Where they’re going, why they’re closing, the works!”

“Right away.” I hung up. Just as I thought I had solved this mystery, it had thrown me “into the fire!” Dinner came and went. It was time for the play rehearsal. I dressed in my trench coat, with a polo-shirt and dress pants underneath. Tracy dressed in a blouse and skirt, along with a long blue coat. I escorted her to the car, and we went to the college.

“Glad to have you back, Adam. And who are all these beautiful girls with you?”

“Never mind, Steve. What’s happened to my house?!”

“What house? Oh, this house! Nothing, I just threw a couple of parties. Nothing big.”

“Where are Karin and David?”

“Oh, they’re at Laura’s house.”

“Steve, get out of here! I don’t care where you go, just get out of here!”

“Fine, if you want to be that way.” He said, leaving.

“Everyone, sorry about the mess, please follow me upstairs and I’ll give you a room, until we figure out where you live.” I directed them upstairs, where I gave them each a room. Stacey went in with Tracy to keep her calm. I went to the phone. “Hello, Laura?”

“Yes, Adam. It’s so good to hear your voice. Is Noah there?”

“Yes, are Karin and David there?”

“Yes.”

“Can you send them back? We have a lot of work to do.”

“Okay.”

“Thanks. Bye.” I hung up. I then called Aaron, my psychiatrist friend. He promised to take a look at Tracy. All three arrived at approximately the same time. Karin, David, and I went to work cleaning the house, while Aaron went upstairs to see Tracy, and the rest of the girls went shopping.

A little while later, Aaron came down and we talked in the living room. “This was some serious brainwashing. She was programmed to kill her dearest friend. I’ve got that out of her, but she doesn’t seem to remember much about you.”

“Is there any hope . . .”

“. . .that she will regain her memory? Yes, but it will take time. You must show her how much you love her.”

“I’ll try.” I said.

“That’s all any of us can do. I must go. Take care.” I waved to him as he exited. I went upstairs to see what was left of her. I pushed open the door, but Stacey put her finger to her mouth to warn me not to speak. Tracy was asleep. I exited and went to finish cleaning up. Supper came and went. That night around eight, the phone rang.

“It’s for you!” Karin called. I went and took the phone from Karin

“Hello?”

“Hello, Adam. This is Mrs. Foster. Somehow or another they’ve talked me into doing a play for your old college.”

“That’s great!”

“What’s so great about it? They’re doing Singin’ in the Rain, but unfortunately, they don’t have enough guys.”

“And?”

“And, I was wondering if you would come and fill in for a part I’m missing.”

“I’d be glad to. By the way, do you need four more girls?”

“Not really.”

“Oh. When would you like me to be there?”

“Auditions are tomorrow at 6:30 PM.”

“Thanks.” I replied. We terminated our phone conversation, just as Tricia entered the house. She flew to me, wrapping her arms around me.

“All right, you win.” Noah and I helped Jenn inside. We found Tracy alone in the dining room. There was also a surveillance camera. “Noah, can you deactivate that camera?”

“Sure, why?”

“We need to abduct Tracy.” I said.

“But, if the camera’s off for too long, they’ll discover that she’s missing, and you need the time to get away. Let me in there. I’ll take her place.”

“No, I couldn’t do that. Who knows what they’d do if they caught you.”

“Bind and gag me. Make it look like I was forced into it. I’ll be okay. Trust me.” She finished. I agreed that her plan was the only one that would work. She took off the clothes she was wearing, down to the bikini, and I bound and gagged her. Noah deactivated the camera, and we abducted Tracy. I placed Jenn at the table and turned on the camera. No alarms went off, so we figured that no one caught on. I dressed Tracy in the clothes that Jenn was wearing and I took her over my shoulder like a sack of potatoes, head over heels. Talk about sweeping a girl off her feet!

Outside, the girls were waiting in the chopper, and we got inside. Tracy was kicking and screaming. I looked back once more at the island we were leaving, thinking about the girl who risked her life for me, and wondering if I would ever see her again. It took guts and courage to do what she did, and for that, I will never forget her.

We were flying for quite a long time before we spotted land. It was the California coast. The pilot landed it on a beach, where I sedated Tracy. We exited the plane, and the girls took off their clothes, showing their swimsuits. We covered the chopper with Tracy inside. Noah and the girls pretended that they were tourists on the beach while I went to a nearby phone booth to call home. I dialed the number and Steve answered the phone. “Steve, what are you doing on my phone? Where’s Karin?”

“I gave Karin and David the day off. By the way, Laura’s been calling here day and night trying to see if I know anything about how you two are doing.”

“If she calls before I get back, tell her that we’re okay, and that Noah will be home shortly.”

“Okay. Bye.” Steve said, and he hung up. I did likewise. I went into a nearby store to pick out some clothes for my “bathing beauties.” Inside, I picked out skirts, blouses, and dresses. I paid for them with credit, seeing as I knew the manager, Sam Walker.

Once outside, I gave the girls their clothes, and went to the chopper. I went inside, and saw my closest friend, who now could be my worst enemy. “Tracy, I’ve got something for you.” I said, holding up the clothes.

“I don’t want your clothes.” I could see that it was going to be a lot harder to deprogram her than I thought.

“Tracy, put these on, please.”

“No!” I left the chopper and went over to Stacey.

“Stacey, could you please get Tracy to put on these clothes. We can’t transport her looking like that.”

“Sure, Adam.” She said. Stacey went to Tracy, and a little while later, they both came out dressed. We called for a couple of taxis. Noah, Stacey, and Tracy went in one, while the rest of us went in another. Arriving home, we all got out and went inside to the living room, which was a mess. Steve was waiting.