Kidnapped

Chapter 5

Chapter Five

The store turned out to be only mere minutes away from the Rhodes' house. Pepper and Rhodey ran the whole way, not stopping to catch their breaths. When Pepper tripped over a seam in the sidewalk and skidded to the ground, scraping open her knees, she leapt right on back up and kept running.

The store was small, with a faded banner hanging over the entryway: Ben's Big Bargains. The two teens ran straight inside without hesitation, finally stopping for the first time.

It seemed it was mostly an older generation milling around the tiny, claustrophobia-inducing building, muttering and complaining to one another as they hobbled around on their wooden canes. It certainly didn't look like a place where a clue from a kidnapper and killer would be, and for a moment Pepper worried they had found the wrong clue.

No, this has to be it, she reassured herself. It has to be...

Rhodey turned to her, wearing his all-too-familiar grim expression. "Where do we begin to look?" he asked, turning his brown eyes to scan the small store. Other than the few elderly women who were staring at them pointedly, probably wondering why a bunch of youngin's were in their store, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Pepper pressed her lips into a thin line, shaking her head.

"I-I don't know."

She watched a tall, grey-haired man fiddling with his hearing-aide for a moment before sweeping her eyes across the store. What exactly were they supposed to look for, anyway? A huge sign that says, "Here's the next clue"?

How could this be happening? And, more importantly, why? Why was this happening to Tony, one of the most unselfish people on the planet? Tony, who stopped every single time he saw a homeless person, giving them enough money to get back on their feet and told them about "second chances." Tony, who cried over the death of innocents that no one thought twice about. Tony, who never gave up on anyone, not for a second, and believed everyone deserved to be able to start over, no matter the things they had done in the past.

Pepper could feel the tears burning at her eyes, feel her cheeks burning, and she turned away from Rhodey so he couldn't tell she was about to break down. The last thing she needed was for him to deem her unable to help due to her incapability to go five minutes without tearing up, and she had to help. She had to.

She noticed Rhodey had begun combing the store for anything that seemed unusual, and Pepper followed suit. After ten minutes, the only abnormal thing she saw was the outrageous prices on peanut-butter.

She rested her back against a wall, bundling up the corner of Tony's shirt and wiping her eyes with it to rid her eyes of the tears blurring her vision. She blinked, turning her gaze around the store once more, her eyes again landing on the old man with the hearing-aide from earlier. He was barking at a man who seemed to be the manager, waving his arms around, tapping his ears for emphasis every once in a while. Pepper vaguely wondered what the old man's problem was, but she told herself it really didn't matter right then.

That's when she heard it, drifting from the old man's direction, and suddenly she understood.

"Rhodey! Rhodey, c'mere, quick!"

When the teen didn't move quickly enough, Pepper leapt over to him and dragged him by the arm over to where she had been standing.

"Geez, Pepper, what?" He asked, rubbing his sore arm. "Did you find the next clue?"

"Yes! Listen!"

A moment passed by, and Rhodey didn't hear anything but the old man and the manager squabbling. "What?"

"Hold on," Pepper whispered. "Hey you! SHUT UP!" she yelled, pointing at the old man. "My best friend's life is on the line, so unless you want a can of peaches shoved down your throat, shut your mouth and stop complaining!" The old man shut up, though only because he was unable to speak with his jaw hitting the floor. Everyone in the store had gone silent, and what Pepper had been so excited about became clear.

It's getting harder to stay awake

And my strength is fading fast

You breathe into me

At last

I'm awake, I'm alive...

"What?" Rhodey asked, feeling slightly disappointed. "It's only a song. Pepper, I think you're-"

"It's by one of Tony's favorite bands!" Pepper cried. "He plays it sometimes when he's inventing." She lowered her voice an octave. "And don't you think it's weird rock would be playing a an old-people store?" She could've sworn she saw the old man shoot her a glare.

She knew why Rhodey was so reluctant to believe this was the clue; they were afraid of getting their hopes up and having them brutally crushed. But Pepper was sure this was the next clue. She could feel it in her bones.

Pepper walked a few feet, stopped, and listened. The music was definitely louder, but she couldn't tell where it was coming from. She tentatively took another step and froze. Slowly, she tilted her head back to look at the ceiling.

"Get me a chair." When Rhodey didn't move, she raised her voice. "Now!" Rhodey hastened for a wooden chair in a corner, and he brought it to Pepper. She set it down, then climbed on top of it, reaching up her arms. They were just long enough that her fingers skimmed the surface of the ceiling.

She jumped, knocking the flat palm of her hand roughly against the plaster, and then again, and again, feeling the ceiling bend beneath her f=hands. She heard the manager and some elderly men and women gasp, giving cries of indignation, but she ignored them, bringing her fist through the ceiling again.

The plaster gave out in a cascade of dust and chunks of plaster. Pepper squealed, toppling off the chair onto the floor, as a small area of ceiling caved in on her. She coughed, eyes watering from the dust, as she pulled herself to her knees, straining her ears once more.

There.

She dove for a mound of plaster, shoving it away feverishly, heart hammering in her ribcage like a shark in an aquarium. Finally, she fund what she was looking for, and she let out a cry, seizing it and holding it to her chest as the music poured from its speakers.

Tony's phone.

She brushed aside the tears threatening to spill from her eyes as she drew her knees to her chest, watching as Rhodey searched the rubble for something else. He straightened up a moment later, grimly holding something out for Pepper to see.

A stopwatch with the numbers 1:29 on it.

Tony had an hour and twenty-nine minutes to live.

Rhodey held out a hand, pulling Pepper to her feet, offering her a loose one-armed hug before he attempted to pry the phone from Pepper's fingers. She resisted at first, not wanting to relinquish her hold on one of Tony's possessions.

"Pepper, we need the next clue," he coaxed, and finally, she let him have the Pod. She watched Rhodey, her eyes puffy and her breath coming from her mouth, as he searched through the pictures. Suddenly, Pepper heard him inhale sharply, and then he handed her the phone to show her the picture on the screen.

A pool of blood.

"What, so now he's taunting us?" Pepper asked, her voice wavering. "Instead of giving us a clue, he just sends a picture of Tony's bl-blood?"

Rhodey slowly shook his head. "I think it's the clue. Remember what they're holding at the Academy?"

Pepper's eyes widened in understanding.

"The blood drive."