Chapter 19

Kidnapped!

Sylvie stretched sideways to work a kink out of her back. It wasn't fair, she thought bitterly. All the others had to worry about was one spine; she had to worry about two! Fortunately, her equine back never hurt as much as her human one. Taryn had muttered something about human backs not being built to handle the strain that centaurs could when she had asked. That was certainly true in itself, Sylvie mused. She had been no lightweight as a human, but as a centaur she could lift things she never could have before… and it was getting easier. Her back ached after a strenuous workout, but it ached less each time she did so, and the pain was coming less frequently than it did just a month ago. She shook her head slightly as she turned the tap off from the faucet and lifted the hose out of the watering trough. She thought that this was further proof that she was still changing a little, while Taryn thought that they had already completed, as she called it, "The Transformation". They argued a little about it, although without any real heat in it. After all, what did it matter if there were still small adjustments being made to their bodies? After what had already happened to them, it didn't seem like such a big deal anymore.

Sylvie returned the hose back to the hanger at the barn entrance. The cattle had already crowded around the trough and were drinking thirstily, water splashing over the sides as they pushed and shoved each other for some water. She made a slight face as she watched their antics. Disgusting. She stayed a moment to watch, making sure none of the animals were going to be injured, before returning to the shade of the big barn. Mr. and Mrs. Gardner had been adamant that they don't leave the safety of the barn during the day. Instead, they were allowed out at dusk and dawn, when they could easily be mistaken for one of the horses they kept on the farm. Sylvie understood the safety precautions, and lived with them, but it was still depressing to be treated like a criminal when she had done nothing but try on a costume at a store.

Taryn appeared outside her stall, her long brown hair done up in a ponytail and her tail freshly braided. It was almost a necessity for her to keep her tail out of the hay and grime that was ever present on the barn floor. Sylvie's tail was braided in a similar manner.

"Finished watering the cows?" Taryn asked as she spotted Sylvie walking up.

"Yep. What's next on the agenda?" Sylvie responded, heading for the water cooler for her own drink.

"Taryn shook her head. "What else," she said disgustedly. "Clean up the barn before dusk so we can be ready to head outside."

Sylvie shared her disgust. "Of course. Never mind that it isn't our mess to begin with, and that we have to clean up every stinkin'…oh, never mind." She huffed. Man, she hated cleanup.

Taryn nodded sympathetically to her friend, but still produced the flat-head shovels from their place on the wall and passed her one. With a sigh, Sylvie finished drinking from the fountain and grabbed the shovel. Together, the girls began in the pens closest to the stall and began scraping the used hay and muck into a large manure pile. With the front doors now closed, the only source of illumination was the harsh electrical lights near the top of the barn. After spending close to a month in the barn, the smell was only just barely noticeable to Sylvie as she worked. Her arms moving rhythmically as she worked. She had been doing such nearly every day since she arrived here, and she thought she might spend the rest of her life in this routine. She shuddered as she imagined what her back would be like in a few more weeks. The shovel handle had been designed to be wielded by an average sized man. However, she could look down on Michael Jordan, which meant the handle was actually a bit short to be comfortably used. She had to bend over in order to get it to reach the floor, or place her arms a good distance below her waist to push the shovel around, which gave very poor leverage indeed.

When the girls finished, they helped Mrs. Gardner set up the table for lunch and ate the meal in silence. Any talk at all was either on the condition of the equipment (Mr. Gardner was complaining that his tractor needed some repair work on the steering) or about the rising cost of gas. Mr. Gardner was particularly worried about the high cost of gas. It was costing him hundreds of dollars to fill up his main tractor, and he was afraid he would go broke.

For the most part, Sylvie tuned it out. They had been talking about the same old things for the past couple of weeks. Idly she wondered if that was all the farm folk worried about, but knew she was being unfair. Immediately, she felt a flash of shame. The couple had been nothing but generous to them the whole time they had been there. They had fed, clothed and sheltered them, asking only for some help around the bar as they couldn't leave it until twilight. With the amount of oats she and Taryn were eating, it was a wonder they weren't fat.

It wasn't that she wanted to be home, she realized slowly. Instead, it was a growing feeling of frustration that she couldn't do more. She wanted to be able to move freely under the sun and use her strength to help more. But she wasn't sure how she would be able to do it. She resolved to talk to Taryn and see if perhaps they could find a way to help the Gardners during their twilight romp.

She got her chance earlier than she expected, for after lunch, Mrs. Gardner decided to go to town to pick up supplies while Mr. Gardner used the truck to run to the mechanics shop to find a part for the tractor. As the two left the barn, she grabbed Taryn by the elbow.

"Hey! Oww!" Taryn whined as she was tugged. "What is it?"

"Taryn, I want to help the Gardners out." Sylvie said earnestly.

"What do you think we've been doing?" Taryn asked, annoyed. "Keeping the barn clean is a big help to them and to us."

"I know, but it's so boring!" Sylvie patiently explained. "I want to be able to do more for them. I mean, we have the strength and the ability. Why can't we help them more around the farm?"

"Uh, because we'll be seen?" Taryn said sarcastically.

Sylvie bit back her initial response and suppressed a desire to roll her eyes. Patience, she needed patience. "I understand that. What I'm suggesting is we find something to do to help while it's still twilight out. Or better yet, after dark. It would be a lot harder to see what we are after dark."

Taryn paused thoughtfully. "Ya know, there was that stump in the field that Mr. Gardner was talking about getting rid of. He was thinking about pulling it out with the tractor today, but I think he said it had broken down before he had been able to get it out of the ground. Maybe we could pull it for him."

Sylvie got excited. "That sounds great! There's some horse harnesses in the back here. Maybe we could find a…what's it called? A hitch?...and use it to help us pull out the stump."

Taryn sighed slightly. "Yes, what we need is a team hitch. However, it's going to require a little jury rigging because we're not exactly built to handle it."

Sylive turned towards the back. "Well, let's get to it then! We can modify it before they get back and be ready to go tonight!"

Taryn helped her get out the tangled lines and parts to the team hitch. The leather was very old and hadn't been used in a while, judging from the cracks and the thick layer of dust on it. The two girls began laying the hitch out on the floor, untangling the lines one by one. When they had finished, the hitch was stretched out along the floor. Taryn busied herself with tying up the leader lines the farmer would use to control the regular horses as they struggled while Sylvie took a look at the horse collars. One of the most important parts, the collars would fit snugly around the horse's neck where it met the chest and provide some of the force for pulling. However, the collars were designed to go over the horse's head and down, and it was blatantly obvious that they would definitely not go around a human torso. For a while she pondered, and then decided that the collars would have to be substituted for something else. Removing them from the setup was as simple as untying all the ropes that led to them.

With the collars gone, Sylvie and Taryn tested out the rig to see what would need to be done to make it work. The harness went on all right, although some of the back lines meant to help steer and pull were missing. Fortunately, there were still several chest ropes that would carry the brunt of the strain. Taryn cast a critical eye over Sylvie as she wore the harness. Walking to the back, she returned with two strips of padded sheep cloth and some rope. Sylvie held as still as possible as Taryn fitted the cloth around her human belly, but couldn't suppress a giggle when Taryn moved her hand over the top to remove any bending. That tickled!

Taryn gave a tight grin as she moved away. Taking some scissors, she cut the cloth and went to her room. Sylvie watched with interest as she came back with an emergency needle kit. When had she brought that anyway? Sylvie didn't remember seeing it go into the stuff they had packed back at the house. Despite her questioning glance at Taryn, Taryn didn't answer and instead set to modifying the cloth into a hollow tube. When she was satisfied with the hitching, she slid a length of line through and tied it up.

When she approached, Sylvie immediately understood what she wanted. Standing still was beginning to be torture for her, she wanted to move! It took all her will to keep from shifting about. Taryn worked quickly, and soon had the ropes jury-rigged to act like the thick collar.

"This isn't going to be comfortable." She warned, "but it should handle the strain of pulling that stump out."

Sylive turned around to admire it. "It looks wonderful!" she enthused, trying to cheer her friend up. To be honest, the thing already itched and looked ugly as sin on her, but she figured that with her jacket and some adjustments, the improvisation would work fine.

Taryn quickly made her set, and Sylvie helped her into her rig. This was the tricky part. Trying to help someone while being restricted in movement was not easy. It took over an hour before they finished getting set up. Finally satisfied, they quickly removed the rig lest they get caught, and stashed it in Taryn's stall. Now all they had to do was wait.

The sole window in the barn began to darken steadily as they waited. Sylvie and Taryn took turns opening the door and peeking out to look at the house, waiting for the Gardners to arrive. The sun flared into vibrant crimson and gold as it reached the mountains and sank out of sight. Twilight was almost here. Sylvie began to pace to control her nervousness. Where were they? Her mind thought. She thought they would have been back long before now. Perhaps the time spent in the mechanic's shop was longer than they had thought; perhaps there had been some more errands they had decided to run while they were in town. Blast it! Where were they?

It was almost full dusk when Taryn shouted excitedly. She had seen headlights bouncing down the driveway. Sylvie's head came up and she ran over to the door. She immediately stuck her head out to look, and saw the headlights of the car and truck pulling into the drive. Finally! Sylvie wondered what had kept them, but then decided it didn't matter.

The girls waited impatiently for the Gardners to finish unloading and come to the barn. Sylive felt her stomach growl a little, and tried to calm it. Patience, she thought, dinner's coming. Unable to bear watching, Sylvie turned back to the interior of the barn. There she waited and tried to control her pacing.

It seemed like forever before the Taryn backed away from the door to let Mr. Gardner in, and the Chief! Sylvie was surprised, and felt her hear race. Could it be they had finally found Roland?

The chief must have spotted the hope on her face because he shook his head.
"Sorry girls." He said quietly. Taryn's face crumpled slightly, and so did Sylvie's. They had thought…never mind. It didn't matter.

Ben cleared his throat. "I'm sorry to ask, but I need you to run through that day again."

"Why?" asked Taryn woodenly. It was clear the disappointment was affecting her. Sylvie also wondered at the question.

"Because, a couple of days after you were attacked, a young woman went missing. The MO looks the same to me." Ben replied slowly.

Sylvie's head came up in surprise. Another attack! Why hadn't anyone found out about her sooner? Why had she not come forward? Then Sylvie bit the inside of her cheek. Of course, probably for the same reasons she hadn't. Ben's next words seem to confirm this.

"I think she purchased a mermaid costume while in the Enchanted Threads, up near Luna Lake. There was a charge on her credit card at the time for a large amount. The state cops had no idea what she had purchased, and there was no sign of the Enchanted Threads in the shack where her car, clothes, and purse were found." Ben continued.

Sylive glanced at Taryn and saw a troubled look in her eyes. Another victim. Sylvie wondered how many others had been tricked like they were. What was Roland's game here? Why was he doing this to them? Did he get some kind of perverse thrill out of this? Sylvie could see the same questions were running through Taryn's mind and walked over and placed her hand on Taryn's shoulder. Taryn took her hand and gave a wan smile, taking comfort in the gesture.

Sylvie turned back to the chief. "Were you able to find her?" she asked.

The chief shook his head. "No. I didn't stay long, and there's been no other sign. I've been making the rounds at the local fisher bars, and found one man who said he and a couple of his buddies had been up fishing on Luna Lake when they heard someone singing the saddest song he had ever heard. They had tried to find the girl singing, but she had vanished. He thought it was some girl lost up on the lake, and he wondered why she would be practicing that late at night. I think it was the missing woman."

Sylvie nodded. That made sense. Who else would be singing out on the lake? She looked levelly at the chief. "Okay, this is what happened…" she began.

"…And then we called my parents, who called you after seeing what had happened to us." Sylvie finished. The light had completely gone from outside, and the smell of food that Mrs. Gardner was bringing in made her stomach growl.

Ben nodded slowly. "Nothing new in the particulars." He finally said. "About what I expected really. He managed to pull the same disappearing act up at the lake. Although instead of a few hours before we showed up, he had a couple of weeks for things to get back to normal."

Sylvie felt bad as she stood at her end of the table and began piling her plate. She had wanted to help the missing girl, but felt that she had let Ben down with her story instead. She grappled with her disappointment in herself, but continued to eat.

Later, after dinner, Ben said goodbye to everyone and started walking out the door. About halfway out, he turned and looked back at Sylvie and Taryn. "Oh, that reminds me. The circus left a few days ago. Well, almost a week now. I think it's safe to assume you can begin moving around a bit more. Just be careful not to be seen until we have this Roland guy in custody."

Sylvie nodded. "Thanks chief. That's great news." Taryn echoed her. Ben gave them a small smile and walked back to the house with his parents.

Sylvie and Taryn talked a while longer. It was clear that the news that Roland had claimed a third victim had shaken them both. They were wondered how many more people had been claimed by him, and how many myths had been given life.

"I'm not sure that's how it works." Taryn said quietly. She had been listening to Sylvie worry about how many costumes they had both seen in the shop. "He only sold us the ones in the back. I'm thinking that's where the magic ones are. The rest are just for show, to fool other buyers or anyone else that might wander in."

Sylvie couldn't argue with that kind of logic. However, something still felt off to her. She filed it away as a mystery for another day, and watched as the sun finished dropping over the horizon. Ben's patrol car pulled away from the farm and he soon vanished into the distance. The girls waited until the lights were off in the farmhouse before making their move.

Taking a pair of flashlights they had found in the back of the barn, as well as an old Coleman lantern, they pulled the team harness from its hiding spot and headed to the barn entrance. Peeking outside, they made sure that Mr. Gardner wasn't going to make any nighttime checkup before sneaking out onto the grounds.

In the dark of the night, the landscape was a very different place. The night sky was studded with a thick dusting of stars that shone down on them, silently watching as they made their way through the labyrinth of gates that made up the main yard. The crescent moon provided a little light as they finally made their way to the field. The stump was just where they had seen it earlier that day, near the far edge of the field and near the tree line. They used the flashlights to light their way, skirting large holes and sleeping cattle they found.

Close up, the stump seemed even larger than they had first thought. It stretched four feet above the ground, and had a giant root ball beneath. It had to be three feet across. Fortunately, most of the dirt had been removed with prior excavation.

Taryn moved closer to Sylvie. "How are we going to do this?" She whispered.

Sylvie whispered back, "I'm not entirely sure, but I was thinking that we should pull it out of the ground and move it back into the trees a little. That should make Mr. Gardner happy."

Taryn nodded a little uneasily and began laying out the chain they had brought to hitch to the stump. After wrapping the metal links around the stump several times, the two girls connected the chain to the wooden hitch that would swing behind their legs when they were finished. Sylvie and Taryn then helped each other into their harnesses, tightening straps here and there to ensure a snug fit. When they were done, Sylvie took a deep breath.

"Ready?" she asked quietly.

"Ready." Taryn whispered back.

"On three then." Sylvie whispered. "One, two…"

"Three!" Taryn grunted as they threw their weight forward. The chain snapped taught as the two centaurs strained against the remaining dirt and roots in the ground. The straps pulled tight across their bodies, quivering against the heavy load. Their hooves were planted firmly as they strained. The stump gave way with a sudden crack. The two girls stumbled forward in surprise, unable to brace themselves against it.

"I guess it's out now." Taryn giggled.

Sylvie also giggled in relief, glad it had finally given. "I guess some of the roots were still in there pretty deep." She said.

Sylvie felt a slight relief. For a moment there, she hadn't been sure that the stump would give. But it had, and now she could continue with her plan. Perhaps now the Gardners would recognize their worth and let them out to help more often.

The two girls began to drag the stump towards the edge of the trees. Pulling the stump was harder than she expected. The edges and roots seemed to get caught in every dip or hole in the ground, making the job harder. When the close branches of the trees at the pasture's edge finally reached her, she wanted to cry in relief. Quickly, they helped each other out of the harnesses, and Sylvie began carefully bundling them up for transport back to the barn while Taryn checked to make sure the stump was not going to hit the fence. Once the two girls were done, they started back up to the barn.

"Well, I'm glad that's done." Sylvie said gratefully. She was surprised to realize that she wasn't all that tired yet. The stump had tired her only slightly. If she had been human when she had tried to move that stump, she would have been exhausted. There were definite advantages to being part horse.

Taryn suddenly cocked her head. "Did you hear something up ahead?" she asked.

Sylvie was jolted from her thoughts. What? She strained to hear. Thanks to her enhanced hearing, she thought she heard something faint up ahead, like a small cough. She shrugged in bafflement. "Perhaps Mr. Gardner is snoring? Or maybe it's a wolf come sneaking in." she giggled. She knew it couldn't be a wolf. After all, they weren't anywhere near here.

Taryn elbowed her in the ribs slightly. "If Mr. Gardner is up, then we had best take it cautiously. Douse the lights, and we'll head into the barn quietly. With luck he won't see us, and we can have that surprise you wanted tomorrow."

Yeah, she thought, definitely didn't want to give away the surprise. That was the whole point of this midnight escapade, after all. Sylvie doused her flashlight, and Taryn followed suit. The wane light of the moon and stars was just enough to make their nerve-wracking way back to the barn. Sylvie paused near the entrance, and tried to open the door quietly. Thank god Mr. Gardner was so finicky about maintaining his barn. The doors opened with barely a squeal.

They snuck in, and Sylvie gave Taryn a grin. They had made it! Suddenly, a coppery smell hit her nostrils. What in the world was that? The lights suddenly snapped on, nearly blinding her. What she saw before her made her gasp in horror.

Mrs. Gardner was lying on her back staring at them with wide open eyes. In the center of her forehead was a round, puckered scar. Streamers of blood covered the rest of her face. She was dressed in her nightgown, Sylvie dimly noticed, and had let down her hair. She stared dumbly at the sight.

The sound of a gun being cocked brought her back to reality. Turning around, she saw a figure in a black jumpsuit staring at her, a ski mask covering his face. He was very tall, she noticed, about chest height on her centaur form, and was built like a mac truck. All this she noticed as an aside, because her main focus was on the oddly shaped gun that he was pointing at her. She had spent enough time watching movies to recognize a silencer when she saw one, although that did nothing to prepare her for seeing one pointed at her in real life!

"Good evening." The man said quietly. "Your friends were wondering when you'd get back." He gestured behind him, and Sylvie began to tremble when she spotted the bound form of Mr. Gardner in his small clothes wiggling in the corner.

"What do you want with us?!" Taryn cried fearfully. Her terror was plain, in her voice and face as she beheld the gun.

"Simple." The man said calmly. "You will stand while an associate of mine secures you in the back of that trailer." He gestured with the barrel, and the girls turned to see a trailer backed up to the cattle chute. How the hell had they missed that? "Then we'll take a little ride."

"And Mr. Grogan?" Challenged Sylvie. She felt her hearts hammer away.

"Will be just fine." The man said smoothly. "I had not intended for them to be even aware of what was going to transpire, but when I couldn't find you, I had to discover what had happened. Mrs. Gardner was uncooperative, but her husband told more after I shot her."

Sylvie shuddered at the callousness of him, and looked at Taryn to see her looking to her! Why did she have to come up with all the answers?! Taryn was the smart one! Taking a deep breath she turned to the figure. No words came out, but she simply nodded.

A second figure came out of the dark. In his hands were several lengths of ropes, harnesses, and a pair of ball gags. He went to Taryn first who shied away. The muffled grunt of Mr. Gardner as the other man rammed his pistol into his side was plenty of warning. Taryn froze and the man went to work. Sylvie tensed as her friend was wrapped up. She desperately looked for a way out, something to distract them, but could find nothing.

In a few short minutes, Taryn had her arms securely locked behind her back, shackles on her hooves, and a ball gag in her mouth. As a final touch, the man secured a blindfold around her before he let her stand straight again. Attaching a lead rope to her neck with a collar, the man tugged forward. Sylvie fumed silently as her friend was led into the trailer. Taryn's steps were tentative as she carefully walked up the ramp. Then it was Sylvie's turn.

The other man approached Sylive and stood cautiously next to her. She bowed to him to allow access to her upper body, all the while watching the other man. He was beginning to look impatient and gestured to his watch. Sylvie felt the harness go on, and then the man began tying her arms behind her back. Within seconds, they were tied so tight she knew she would never be able to get them off on her own. Her jaws were wrenched apart and a ball gag shoved in. Pain flared and she grunted. She would not show pain and fear to these men! She glared defiantly at them, which served only to amuse them. The one with the gun simply chuckled while the other laughed. The last thing she saw was Mr. Gardner's horrified face as they locked eyes, then the blindfold was on, and the darkness came for her.

Her sight was gone, but her hearing was not. She felt the cool leather of the collar clip around her neck, with a slight weight that told her that a lead rope was attached to hers as well. She almost jumped when she felt her legs being shackled with strips of leather; she could hear Velcro being attached to each other. They must be for securing her legs in the trailer, she surmised. And to keep her from running, she realized. They allowed her just enough movement to walk, but not enough to run or anything else. Even walking was hard, as she was led to the trailer. She felt a constant fear that she would fall, and so took tentative steps.

She was led into the trailer and secured. Her legs were spread slightly as they were attached to the walls and she heard what had to be her lead rope being attached to a wall ring. The footsteps that had led her in walked away, and she experimented a little. Nope, no give at all in her ropes. She was well and truly trapped. A wave of panic and despair crashed over her. This was not happening! She was a star athlete and a human girl, and she was being kidnapped as a centaur!

A sudden cough outside the trailer sent icy chills down her spine, and she let out a muffled scream. She knew exactly what had happened, and the fact that she had tried did nothing to ease her pain. A pair of doors slammed shut and the sound of a truck engine roaring gave her a bit of warning. The trailer suddenly lurched and she felt a rumble through her hooves. They were moving now. The panic and terror finally caught up to her, and she let the tears fall down her face.