Mall Security Kidnapping

Chapter 1 - Mall Security Kidnapping

Gary never expected to get caught shoplifting. It was something he frequently did for a little thrill, it soon became routine and lost the excitement behind his mischief. However he couldn't bring himself to stop this criminal habit. That is until he felt a firm hand around his wrist, catching him red-handed in the act. Now he sits on the floor of a tiny cell in the mall basement, awaiting his fate. Wondering if he will get charged with any crimes or can he lie and weasel his way out of this gloomy situation he put himself in.

Patrick, the mall security guard had watched Gary on the camera for weeks now. He knew the young man had thought he was so sneaky, damn kids these days. He looked to be no older than twenty, barely even had any hair on his chin. What would he know about a hard days work and catching little shits like him?! Today Patrick had seen Gary swipe snacks and small trinkets from FYE multiple times in the same day, this was his breaking point. He was going to catch the little twerp in the act, and he had.

The mall was referred to as a "ghost mall" by the locals. No hauntings, hardly any stores inside either. Slowly businesses had begun shutting down one by one. Patrick had watched his coworkers slowly get laid off until he was the only remaining security guard. Fewer stores also meant a decrease of customers to supervise. Patrick isn't sure of just how many things Gary has stolen but he sees the young man has no intention of stopping his thievery.

Patrick brought Gary down to the basement holding cell and started to fill out the necessary paperwork before he was paged to deal with an "emergency". Turns out a raccoon was stuck in one of the dumpsters, Patrick had spent almost a full twenty minutes trying to rescue the scared animal without getting bit. After he finally succeeded he had forgotten all about Gary waiting in the holding cell. He still hadn't called police and as the night went on, Patrick continued walking around the mall awaiting the moment he could clock out and return home.

Gary remained forgotten, with no clock in his view he felt that screaming for help would be dramatic, but when the music stopped and all the lights went out, he abandoned his reservations. "SOMEBODY! ANYBODY! LET ME OUT!!! SECURITY?! ANYONE? WHAT THE FUCK!" No one is in the mall to hear his cries for help. He doesn't even have any way to pass the time, nothing to lay down on and try to sleep with either. He does have a candy bar he had hidden in his tall socks, the security guard failed to pat him down and only had his pockets turned inside out.

Gary longs for his cellphone which was taken from him by Patrick. "Hell, I'd even call the police on myself right now if it meant I could get out of here."

Patrick awakes in the night, troubled by something. He feels his subconscious awoke him for a reason but cannot decipher why. Then it hits him, "That punkass kid in the cell! I never finished dealing with him!" Minutes later he is driving down the highway back to the mall. Contemplating how to handle this now even larger mess, would they fire him over this? Could that little shit sue him? Parking in the lot he opens the glovebox. Sitting on top of a few papers is a little baggy with some pills inside, right where his friend had left it. A few months ago he had gone drinking with a friend, he was the designated driver and upon leaving the bar his friend Caleb had complained there were no hot bitches to roofie. This led to him throwing the baggy in the glove box during his drunken fit. Patrick hadn't known prior to going out that his friend had intended to drug anyone, but he never touched those pills. He was thankful for them now.

Without thinking too hard about his actions Patrick grabs two roofies and drops them in a plastic water bottle. His friend intended to drug a woman, he never said how many to use but you probably need two for a full grown man? At least, this was Patrick's assumption. He makes sure the pills have fully dissolved before he uses his key to open the back door entrance to the mall.

Flicking the lights on in the basement Patrick sees Gary curled up in the fetal position on the floor. "Hey, kid! Wake up."

Started Gary scrambles to sit up. His tired blurry eyes make the security guard look even more intimidating, although he does notice the plain T-shirt and sweatpants have replaced this mornings uniform. Before Gary can give this security guard a piece of his mind, a water bottle is thrust through the gaps in the bars of his cell.

"You haven't had a drink since I locked you up, sorry about that. The names Patrick." Gary greedily unscrews the cap without noticing the lid had been tampered with and chugs a third of the water. "What the hell man? You can't just do that to people. I'm not some animal, I have rights!" Gary pleads.

Patrick puts his hands on his hips and stares down at the puny kid, "You committed a crime, more than once. You aren't getting any pitty from me." Gary takes a couple more sips, talking has agitated his dry throat. "Sh-schtill. You can't do that, ma... man.." Garys head is starting to feel woozy, his words are coming out wrong. He can't think straight. "H-halp me. Puh-p-p..." The open bottle falls from Garys hand and starts spilling out onto the floor.

"Damn those drugs work fast." Patrick mumbles. He unlocks the cage and pokes Gary with his shoe. No movement from the punk. He quickly scoops him up in his strong arms and carries him out the back entrance, unseen by the few working cameras. Unsure himself of what to do, he knows he cannot afford to lose his job over some scumbag. He drives home with Gary laid across the backseat.

...

Gary slowly comes to, not knowing what time it is, or even what day. In front of him is a bottle of water and two peanut butter sandwiches in a bag. "The fuck? THE FUCK?! Hello?! What's going on? Where the hell am I?" He looks down and sees he is wearing clothes that aren't his, dull green pajamas. A few blankets are underneath him and his head is throbbing with pain. He has no idea how he ended up in what appears to be a basement but he slowly gets his bearings and crawls up the stairs to a door that doesn't budge when he turns the handle. Locked from the outside. He starts banging on the door, still woozy from the drugs.

Temporarily giving up on escape he goes back to the pile of blankets, his surroundings are illuminated by one single lamp on an otherwise empty table. He sees an empty bucket and nothing else in this room except for the food he woke up next to. Not trusting the sandwich or water he ignores them. Curling up in the softness of the bedding Gary closes his eyes and prays this is only a bad dream.

Patrick is distracted his entire shift at work, thinking about what to do with that man locked up in his basement. His has no close neighbors to hear any screams but how is he going to get himself out of this mess now? He rifled through the young man's phone and discovered his name was Gary, right, he had known this; he simply forgot with all the chaos. Part of Patrick hopes Gary is awake when he returns, the other part hopes he is still knocked out. "Jeez, I hope I didn't kill the dude." Patrick contemplates calling his friend Caleb to ask about the roofies but he ultimately decides he can't risk anything tracing back to his kidnapping.

...

Negotiations between the two men are not going well. Patrick wants Gary to eat and drink because he will not be leaving any time soon and must survive. Gary doesn't want to listen to this older man he now views as a maniac, insisting on his release. "What kind of sick shit do you plan to do when I take a drink and pass out again? No! Let me go! You're a crazy man!" Gary spits in Patricks face and this causes his to storm out of the basement, locking it behind him. Gary is throughly upset and decides to throw the sandwiches and water into the bucket that was left in the basement before pissing on both as a stupid act of defiance.

Later that evening Patrick goes back down to basement after having raided his own pantry. Gary remains silent and refuses to acknowledge his abductors presence. "Look, it's a 12 pack of Coca-Cola, I haven't tampered with it at all, and here. A package of unopened oreos, jar of baby pickles, pudding cups, all things clearly sealed. Please, eat something. Drink." Patrick leaves Gary once again, not sure what he will find in the morning.

Gary isn't feeling any better about his captivity and still doesn't entirely trust the food delievered by Patrick. Boredom gets the best of Gary and he reaches for the oreos, his mouth is so dry he struggles to swallow the cookie. After staring at the cola soda he takes a can and pops the tab. *Hisss.* a small cautious sip, then he waits. Nothing happens so he takes another small sip and pauses, again, nothing happened. He didn't pass out this time. Filled with relief he chugs the rest of the can and starts eating the oreos by the fistful.

Morning comes and Patrick cautiously makes his way back into the basement. Empty Coca-Cola cans are littered about and the oreo package was reduced to crumbs. A foul smell comes from the corner of the room, with a glance patric can see the metal bucket was been moved there. He makes a mental note to swap it out with a new one for Gary to use later tonight, yeah, he can make this work.

"I'm helping you overcome your stealing habit. Be thankful you little punk. You won't be able to swipe anything while I'm keeping you safe. You know people get their hands cut off for stealing in some parts of the world?" Patricks words echo in the near empty basement. Gary looks up at him and berates flipping off Patrick but he isn't sure if his situation could get any worse. Maybe he can befriend this psycho and escape? "Could I have more food? You haven't given me anything to do down here besides eat. More drinks too. And like, a variety."

Patrick nods, then leaves Gary because he needs to get to his security job at the mall. Patrick makes a mental note to buy a mini fridge for the basement, he'll do that tonight after work. He considers giving Gary something to do but ultimately doesn't care enough.

...

Gary is both surprised and mortified when his kidnapper brings a mini fridge into the basement. This makes everything feel so much more real, he wouldn't be doing this if Gary had any chance of being released. Deli meats, cheese, and yogurt are placed in the fridge. A bag of apples rests on top of the new mini fridge. Patrick stacks the other groceries next to it, along with a case of Pesi soda cans and capri sun juice pouches. It looks like a feast, guilt is growing inside Patrick but he can't let Gary go.

Gary wastes no time breaking open the packages of snacks the moment Patrick is gone. He can't do anything to pass the time other than eat, so, he will. He will eat and eat, never stopping.