text: [Themes: modern, serious]
  
  "Hello Moira, nice to see you," You manage to say without showing how annoyed you are at her greeting.
  
  "Wow, who are you and what have you done with Ben?" Moira responded, getting you more annoyed. "I mean not only did you leave your house, but you're talking without sounding like a dick."
  
  "Look, I can't find Victoria, can you tell me where is she, she's not answering her phone and I just want to make sure she's alright."
  
  "Will you relax, she's probably still at Steve's house, they left here together last night."
  
  "Who the hell is Steve?"
  
  "You mean you don't know, wow just wow, Victoria always said you were a bit obvious to things, but I didn't know it was to the point where she can date a guy for a month and you remain completely clueless."
  
  The mention of Victoria having a boyfriend caught you off guard. You're pretty sure Victoria never mentioned him, maybe she was worried you'd get upset or maybe simply she never told you because you never asked. Are you really that withdrawn? Now is not the best time to worry about this, it's better stay focused on finding her.
  
  "Are you sure she's there?" You ask.
  
  "I'm not positive but it makes sense, last night Victoria was here for a bit then Steve came and picked her up, I assume she spent the night there since she isn't at your house," Moira explains.
  
  "Why would she spend the night there?"
  
  "Jesus, are you really that socially inept, do I really have to explain why she would spend the night at her boyfriend's house?"
  
  You ponder for a second and then as the realization hits you, a look of disgust appears on your face.
  
  > Demand to know where Steve is
  You need to tell me where Steve is," You demand while rising your voice a bit.
  
  "Now there's the Ben I know, but I don't think it's a good idea to have you go to his house while you're acting like an asshole, maybe when you learn proper etiquette I'll tell you," Moira says while clearly have too much fun with this conversation.
  
  "Why are you doing this, you know going out and talking to people is not an easy thing for me to do and yet you decide to make it worse for me."
  
  Moira seemed slightly bothered by this remark as if noticing she was beginning to take things a bit too far. "Alright, alright, I'll tell you what, you go home and in a bit I'll swing by Steve's house and let Victoria know you're concerned," She says in a softer tone.
  
  "Fine," You reply as you turn around to head out.
  
  Once back in your house, you sit at your kitchen table staring at your phone waiting for Victoria to respond. You're beginning to get impatient as you want to put this ordeal behind you and return to your regular routine. After waiting for almost an hour there is finally there is a knock at the door, it must be Victoria, you wonder why she didn't call, still you're glad this is over with. You walk up and open the front door only to find it's not Victoria, but Moira. Tears are flowing her eyes and her sclera's have turned red.
  
  "Ben it's terrible," Moira bawls as she lets herself in your house. She puts her head on your shoulder as she begins sobbing uncontrollably.
  
  "Moira, you need to calm down and explain to me what's wrong," You say, dreading finding out what caused Moira to act like this.
  
  Moira lifts her head up off your shoulder and wipes her tears with her sleeve. You grab the mug that is the least dirty from a cabinet above the kitchen sink and fill it with water. You hand it to her as she sits down at the table, you take a seat opposite of her.
  
  "Now Moira, I need you to tell me in a calm manner what happened?" You say politely but firmly.
  
  Moira takes a sip out of the mug and begins to explain "I went to Steve's house and the police, they were...they were taking his body out, I think, think someone killed him," Moira begins crying again as you too begin to become overwhelmed with fear.
  
  "What about Victoria?" You shout, instantly realizing that yelling at someone overcome with grief isn't the kindest thing to do.
  
  "I don't know, she wasn't there if that's what you're asking," Moira answers before taking another sip of the water.
  
  You take out your cell phone and call the police, hopefully they will able to find Victoria. "911, what is your emergency?" The voice on the other end inquiries.
  
  "Yeah, um, I recently found out my sister's boyfriend has been murdered and I can't find her anywhere," You reply hoping that you don't come off as suspicious.
  
  "What's your name, sister's name and her boyfriend's name?"
  
  "Uh, my name is Ben Higgins, my sister is Victoria Higgins and her boyfriend's name is Steve."
  
  "What's his last name?'
  
  You have no idea, it most likely would've been smart to know this before you called. You turn your attention to Moira. "I need to know Steve's last name," You say rather impatiently, still the not best way to talk to someone who is somewhat traumatized.
  
  "Upton," She informs you while still weeping a bit.
  
  "His last name is Upton," you tell the operator.
  
  "So your sister Victoria Higgins is missing and her boyfriend Steve Upton has been murdered?"
  
  "That's about it."
  
  "I need your address."
  
  "219 Okonedo Street."
  
  "Alright, I'm sending someone over." The operator hangs up and you really hope they don't think you're behind this. Moira has somewhat calmed down.
  
  "Will they find Victoria?" Moira asks sounding worn out.
  
  "I sure hope so" you say with obvious uncertainty in your voice.
  
  Several minutes later a police car pulls into your driveway shortly followed by a knock at the door. You open the door to find a women slightly older then you with light brown hair in a bun and matching colored eyes. You would find her pretty if wasn't for the serious look on her face.
  
  "Hello, I'm detective Carla Northcutt are you Ben Higgins?" She asks you with a no non-sense demeanor.
  
  "I am, come on in," you respond in a direct way.
  
  Carla walks in and sees Moira sitting at the kitchen.
  
  "Who are you?" Carla begins questioning as if doing an integration
  
  "I'm Moira Estacado, Victoria's my best friend you need to find her," Moira pleads while beginning to cry again.
  
  Carla sits down at the table and turn her attention back to you, you figure she thinks you'll be easy to get information from. "So start from the beginning, from when you noticed your sister was missing to when you called the police."
  
  "I woke up, found Victoria wasn't home, I tried to contact her phone, got no response, I went over to Moira's place, she said she was at her boyfriend's and would go over there to let her know I was worried, then Moira came over here saying Steve, Victoria's boyfriend is dead and then I called you."
  
  Carla looks back at Moira with suspicion. "When did you notice Steve was dead, you called the police not long after the incident was reported and the news hasn't picked up the story yet," Carla quizzes in an accusing manner.
  
  "After Ben came into my restaurant looking for Victoria, I offered to see if she was at Steve's house, about twenty minutes later I headed over there and saw police at the place and they were taking his body out on a stretcher, there was a sheet but a hand was sticking out and was wearing a ring that Steve always wears, I knew it was him," Moira explains before sobbing again.
  
  You walk over to Moira and put your arm on her shoulder to comfort her. Carla stops looking at Moira with distrust, you guess she could tell Moira isn't the killing type. "Ben why didn't you just go to the house to check on your sister yourself?"
  
  "I had recently found out Victoria had a boyfriend in the first place and Moira thought she should do it since she's better with dealing with people."
  
  Carla doesn't look at you with same suspicion she had given Moira, you figure she knew you were telling the truth. "From what I know, I believe Steve was killed by Westfield's gang and it is most likely the gang is connected to Victoria's disappearance as well," Carla mentions.
  
  "Who's Westfield?" You ask, completely puzzled.
  
  Carla and Moira look at you as if they are unsure your question was serious or not. "You're telling me you've never heard of Westfield? The most wanted man in county if not the state," Carla's queries as her disbelief overpowers her seriousness.
  
  "I don't get out much" You confess.
  
  "Trust me he doesn't" Moira confirms.
  
  "Westfield is a crime lord, illegal gambling, drug dealing, prostitution, armed robbery, human trafficking, extortion and of course outright murder, Westfield's gang has done it all, the worst part is we don't know his real name, what he looks like or even if he is a he at all" Carla explains.
  
  > say "What makes you so sure this Westfield guy did it?"
  "What makes you so sure this Westfield guy did it?" You ask Carla.
  
  "His MO is that his gang carves a 'W' on their victims, which Steve had, Westfield wants people to know when he has someone killed." Carla reveals to you. Moira sobs upon hearing about this brutality.
  
  "What's to prevent someone from doing the same thing and having look like Westfield has done it?" You continue with your questions.
  
  "That would piss Westfield off and only an idiot would that" Carla says confidently.
  
  > say "What does this crime lord want with my sister?"
  "What does this crime lord want with my sister?" You ask with grave concern.
  
  "My theory at this point is Steve was the target and Victoria was at the wrong place at the wrong time, hopefully I'll be able to figure out why Steve was killed in the first place, I don't know what Westfield plans to do with her, rest assured I will do everything I can to find her," Carla says rather sure of herself.
  
  > Don't ask any more questions about Westfield
  Detective Northcutt asks you and Moira a few more question, mainly about contact information. She then hands you a card.
  
  "You can call me on this number if something comes up, do not under any circumstances call 911 again," Carla warns.
  
  "Why not?" You question.
  
  "Some people in the department can't be trusted, I don't have time to go over details right now, just trust me"
  
  Carla quickly exits the house and drives off, Moira then approaches you.
  
  "Ben, can I stay here for the night?" Moira requests rather straight forwardly.
  
  "What? Why?" You reply, demonstrating your lack of social skills.
  
  "What do you mean why? The most dangerous man in the area has killed Steve and has done who knows what to Victoria, I'm freaking out and would feel a lot more comfortable if I wasn't alone."
  
  > let Moira stay
  You find it a bit ridiculous that Moira doesn't want to be alone but considering all that she's gone through today, you can at least do this for her. "Alright you can stay, you can sleep in Victoria's room but I got to warn you, she's a bit of a slob." You inform Moira.
  
  "Thanks, you know when try, you're actually kind of pleasant," Moira compliments.
  
  "Uh, thanks, I think."
  
  Later that night you decided to work some more at your computer since you can't sleep with all that is going on, there is a knock at your bedroom door. "Come in," You say still focused on your work.
  
  Moira walks in and sits at the foot of your bed. "I can't sleep," she states.
  
  You turn your attention away from your computer. "Me either, did you want something?" You once again show off your lackluster social skills.
  
  "God, Ben, why are you so... odd, I mean I can't believe you and Victoria are related."
  
  "Victoria likes going out and being with people, as for me I'm quite content in being this house."
  
  "You've got to want more then in life then just this, I mean there's a whole world out there to experience and you're telling me there isn't one thing in it you want?"
  
  "I tried it once, didn't like so I didn't do it again."
  
  "So did something happen to you to make this way?" You wonder why Moira is having this conversation considering all that is happening, but you quickly figure out she is talking to you specifically to get her mind off today's events.
  
  "This may come to a shock to you, but I have difficulty talking to people, I don't know why, I just have trouble communicating and picking up non-verbal social cues, I'm different and when I was younger I learned different was wrong, people didn't want different, they didn't want me."
  
  "So you hide in your home, because a couple of people were nasty to you? I hate to break to you but everyone has to deal with that, do you know how many assholes I have to deal at my restaurant every single day?" Moira informs. "Not to mention the drunks that hit on me when I'm working at the bar, but still I have my own business, I have a lot of friends, I love my life and I wouldn't trade for anything in the world"
  
  "That's easy for you to say, the only thing I have in my life is my fucking job and my sister and god only knows what's happened to her."
  
  "Yeah, if you stay in this god damn house all day you'll never get anywhere, once Victoria is found and she will be found, I'll get you a job at my restaurant, getting out more is good for you and the social interactions will do wonders for your attitude."
  
  "Don't you get it, my social skills suck and people find it easier to shit on me for it then actually help."
  
  "Fine, I'll also help you learn how to talk to people, maybe you'll even make friends."
  
  "Why would you do this all for me, you give me a hard time like everyone else."
  
  "I'm sorry, I just like to mess around sometimes, I admit I don't know when to the draw line, but I want to help you because after everything that's going on, I can tell you're a good person, certainly a better person then that bitch detective, can you believe she talked to me like I had something to do with Steve's death?"
  
  "She was just doing her job."
  
  "Oh, please, you were ogling her the minute she walked in, don't think I didn't notice that, you'll never get a girl if you keep gawking like you did, you need to know to properly woo someone."
  
  "I'd able to woo if I wanted too, thank you very much."
  
  "Oh yeah, why don't you demonstrate it for me then?"
  
  "I'm not doing this."
  
  "Alright, fine, I'm headed back to Vic's room, be careful kiddo."
  
  Moira makes a faint smile before leaving your room, she liked having a break from the fear and uncertainty and you have to admit you did as well. An hour later you lay in bed, too tired to keep working but too alert to fall asleep. You hear noises coming from out in the hall followed by heavy footsteps that sound like they are headed toward your room. You can tell it isn't Moira and quickly lock your door. Seconds later someone tries to open your door and when they figure out its locked they begin banging against the door to force it open. It won't be long before they break in.
  
  > Escape through the bedroom window
  You dash to the bedroom window, open and jump out. The sound of your bedroom door being kicked is heard as the heavy footsteps head towards the window. You crouch down and learn against the wall, hoping whoever is in there doesn't look straight down. After a few agonizing seconds you hear the footsteps move away from the window and out into the hall. Slowly you get up and head towards the front yard. There is a black sedan parked in front of your house, before you can get closer, a large, well built man with a rough face walks out of the front door of your house. The darkness of the night provides cover for you as the man fails to see you and the only light is coming from the kitchen which makes its way outside since he failed to close the front door. You notice hoisted over his shoulder is Moira who isn't moving. The man walks over to the car and pops open the trunk placing Moira inside, who is hopefully just unconscious.
  
  The man then gets in his car and begins to drive off. You quickly run back into your house grab your car keys and get into your own car. You speed off hoping not to lose the trail of the man, luckily not long you see the car has stopped at a red light. Remembering Carla's card you take it out of your pocket along with your cell phone. You try to dial the number but the light turns green and the black sedan drives off as you keep a safe distance. You figure it will be easier to call the Carla once you find out where this man going.
  
  After about twenty minutes of driving, you find yourself on the outskirts of town as the sedan drives down a narrow road that leads to the entrance of a group of buildings surrounded by a razor wire fence. The entrance itself is an open gate that has a security booth behind it. The black sedan is able to drive in no problem but you doubt you would able to do the same. Near the gate you see a sign with lights on top of it:
  
  Now is as good of a time as any to call Carla, as once again you take your cell phone it alerts there is no service, figures this would happen at the worst possible time. You get out of your car to try to get reception. It doesn't take long to find it but your relief is short lived as you feel a strong pain in the back of your head and everything goes black.
  
  > Some time later
  "Ben, wake the fuck up!" You hear as it brings you back to reality.
  
  It takes a second for your eyes to focus as you make out a man with slicked back blonde hair, wearing a white t-shirt and jeans is standing over you. The more alarming part is that you see a holster with a revolver in it on his right hip. It takes a few more seconds to figure out you are in a chair with your arms tied down to the chair arms.
  
  "Well look who is back in the world of the living, you didn't think you could follow one of my boys without them noticing did you?" the man says as a creepy smile appears on his face.
  
  As the man walks back away from you, you notice you are in a windowless room with unpainted dry wall. More importantly you're not the only one tied to a chair, as you can see Moira and your sister Victoria to your right and Detective Northcutt to your left, all in the same predicament as you.
  
  "Vic, Moira are you alright?" you cry out to them.
  
  "Ben, you need to get us the fuck out of here!" Moira shouts in a state of panic.
  
  "I'm sorry Ben, this all my fault, if I wasn't dating that asshole Steve none of this would've happened," Victoria responds.
  
  You turn your attention to Carla. "Are you OK?" You ask.
  
  "Don't worry about me," Carla's reassure as her bravery doesn't buckle in the slightest.
  
  The man stands in the middle of the room amused, by what's going on and turns his attention back to you. "I suppose now would be a good time to tell you what the fuck is going on, you see I am Westfield, I run this fucking town but lately people seem to forget that, you see your little sister's boyfriend, Steve Upton, liked to gamble at one of my racket's but had some bad luck and ran up a lot of debt that he couldn't pay, but we came to a comprise, he offered Victoria as payment, she could make me a bit of money as of my girls since she's young and pretty" Westfield explained.
  
  "But you killed him anyway," You mention as you take all the information in.
  
  "The man was willing to sell his girlfriend to pay off his debt, someone like that can't be trusted, I couldn't risk him deciding one day to tell someone who gave a fuck, all he knew about my operations, besides he lied to me, he told me your sister had no friends or family, that no one would miss her, how ironic that both a friend and a family member would come looking her"
  
  "Look he's dead, please just let us go, we never did anything to you, we won't tell anyone."
  
  "If I was going to do that, I wouldn't have bothered to bring you here in the first place you idiot, you can blame Detective Northcutt for your current predicament, you see I have people in the police who for years had told her not to go after me but she wouldn't listen, we tried to dissuade by making sure she never moved up in the force but she still insisted, after she learned that I was connected to your sister disappearing and Steve's death and wouldn't bury the case I realized I had to take more drastic measures"
  
  "Then just kill me you loquacious shit," Carla butted in.
  
  "No, there's always someone like you who gets self-righteous, determined to good in a world gone bad, these same people don't care if they live or die, so simply killing them doesn't stop the problem, by killing other's they will learn that if you try to fuck with me you don't just put yourself in danger, you put everyone around you at risk, if it's any consolation, I don't plan on killing Victoria, I mean I did go through a lot of trouble to get her, she's just here to watch you die, I think of it as a way to break her in, the memories of her brother and her best friend getting their brains blown out will crush any ideas about being disobedient "
  
  "You fucking asshole!" Moira shouts. Westfield turns his attention to her.
  
  "Well maybe I'll spare you along with Victoria, killing a pretty little thing like you would seem like a waste," Westfield suggests in a perverted way.
  
  Westfield continues to talk and with his back turned, you try to find a way out. You noticed the rope tying your right hand is lose, it seems that Westfield was in the process of tying your right hand when Moira shouted at you to wake up earlier. The distraction caused him not to finish the job properly. You are able to wiggle your hand free and soon untie your left hand. You need to end this quickly, you could try to sneak up on Westfield and take him out or you could sneak over to Carla, untie her and let her deal with him. Carla is trained for this and would have a better chance of succeeding, but walking over and untying her would take more time and if Westfield notices you, he'll kill you in a second.
  
  > take on Westfield yourself
  You run up to Westfield while his back is still turned to you. You deliver a right hook to the back of his head and he stumbles to the ground. Sadly you were never the kind of person who would be considered muscular and before long Westfield is back on his feet. You try to swing at him but he is able to avoid you as he takes his revolver out of its holster and shoots you several times. The screaming of Victoria and Moira is the last thing you hear.