"Uncle Kal, I hope she is beautiful?" Jun, who had been noticing the sly smile and the flushed face of his uncle, asked with a teasing smile. He is now 6 years old, so he already knew some things above his age.
Kal was shocked when he heard the question because he did not realize he was smiling nor did he notice he was blushing until he saw the teasing smile on Jun and Mabel's face and he could only open his mouth and close it as he was speechless and had no idea how to beat those two blunt kids with words.
"Kids, leave uncle alone and let him chat with his girlfriend a bit... Don't you want your uncle to bring a wife home??" She asked with a smile and winked at Kal.
"You know what? Let's go to the market to get some things... uncle doesn't have to drive us. We will call a cab." She said and grabbed the two kids' hands and took them out of the house to give Kal space to chat with his bae.
Kal realized what Hannah had just done and smiled happily. He mouthed "Thank you" and gave a thumbs up for her!. Hannah returned it with a wink and left the house in a hurry.
********
Hannah and the kids bought so many things. What they wanted and what they did not want, they got so many things and spent lots of money at the market. It was when Hannah remembered that the boss would already be home that she told the kids it was time to go back home
"Dad must be home already, let's go back home. Ok?" She said to the kids.
"Oh yes, mum! We can't wait to see dad!" The kids replied happily.
"I will show dad my toys and the shoes we bought for him," Jun said and Mabel nodded in approval.
They walked out of the store to wait for a cab. "Let's stay here and wait for a cab. Ok?" She said to the kids and the kids replied happily "Yes mum." and they all stood by the roadside looking for a cab.
They were still by the roadside when a car drove at a very high speed towards them and they ran back to avoid being hit.
The car drove up and parked. Three huge burly men rushed out of the car and grabbed both Hannah and Jun.
"Who are you guys?? Why are you doing this?? Leave us alone!" Hannah struggled to free herself but she was too weak compared to the burly men.
"Who are you?? Leave us!" Jun also tried to free himself but he was just a kid and he was easily overpowered.
Mabel saw the three burly men take her mum and her brother away and she started hitting the men with her shoe and punches. "Leave Jun and mum alone! Leave my family alone!" She said as she continued hitting the men and one of the men pushed her away and she landed on her ass!
"Haaa!" She screamed in pain and before she could stand up again, the burly men already dragged Hannah and Jun into the car.
She stood up and ran after the car. She ran and ran till she became breathless and she sat down on the roadside crying.
***
Kim got home in the evening feeling all tired and stressed out. He climbed the steps and entered his room to take a shower before he see his kids when he heard a knock on his door.
"Who's that?" He asked
"It's me, boss. Can I come in?" Kal asked
"You can come in. The door is not locked."
Kal entered the room and greeted his boss but Kim noticed Kal was unsettled and he asked "What's wrong, Kal? You look unsettled and worried. What's going on?"
"The thing is... boss, Hannah and the kids went out in the afternoon to get some things at the market but they never came back."
"Did you call them?"
"Yes I did but they never picked up... I called Hannah several times already and her phone rang but she didn't pick it nor did she call back". Kal explained
"Ok... I will try the number now. I'm sure they are fine. Don't worry."
Kal nodded but he still felt uneasy and blamed himself for not taking them to the market himself and prayed in his mind that they return safely and no harm should come to them.
Kim picked up his phone and dialed Hannah's number. It rang several times but it was not picked up.
"Hannah isn't picking up her phone. Maybe she lost her phone." he tried Jun's line and it was the same thing and he was starting to get worried. His heart was already beating fast. Then, he called Mabel.
It rang for a while before she picked it up. Kim sighed in relief
"Mabel, where are you? Where are Hannah and Jun? I called them but they are not picking up. Did they lose their phone?" He asked nervously and was curious to hear the reply.
Mabel started sobbing out loud
"Dad..." She called and continued sobbing.
Kim became worried
"Dad... dad... Jun and .. and ..mum has been kidnapped." Mabel said through the phone amidst tears.
Kim gasped and nearly dropped his phone. He lost his tongue for some minutes and couldn't bring out a single word from his mouth and just stared into space with shock clearly shown on his face.
Kal who overheard the conversation also stood rooted to the ground with his mouth wide open in shock and self-blame. 'If only he had driven them there, they wouldn't have been kidnapped' kept ringing in his heart and he almost went crazy.
"Dad... dad!" Mabel called over the phone when she realized her father wasn't saying anything.
Kim snapped out of his trance and checked his phone to see if Mabel was still there. He checked it and put it back on his ear. "Hello Mabel, are you there?" Kim asked to be sure if his daughter was still on call.
"Yes, dad,"
"Where are you right now?" Kim asked but before Mabel could reply, he interrupted "Don't worry Mabel. Just send me the address and I will meet you there right away!" He said and immediately left the room while Kal followed behind.
Kim drove with so much speed that Kal was worried they could meet with an accident but he did not dare talk as he knew the situation on the ground. He could only pray for protection for them and for Hannah and her son.
In minutes, they got to where Mabel described for them and met Mabel all muddled up in a corner with her head bowed. Kim walked up to her and held her shoulder "Mabel..." he called gently.
Mabel raised her head immediately when she heard her father's voice. Her face was red and all swollen out of too much weeping. She had cried too much and her face made that clear. "Dad..." she said and hugged her dad tightly.
"Dad, please, save Jun and mum... those men are bad. They might hurt them," she said as tears rolled down her face. Kim wiped her tears gently and got down on one knee to be on the same height as her and placed his two hands on her two shoulders "Don't worry baby... I will save them and bring them back home." he promised even though he wasn't sure. He knew he had to say something to calm his daughter.
"Thank you, dad," Mabel replied and hugged her dad again. Kim hugged her back and patted his back gently.
"You should go home with Uncle. I will go look for them and bring them home." Kim finally said as he released his daughter from their emotional hug.
Mabel didn't want to go home. She wanted to search for them together with her dad and now her dad wants her to go home? Hell No! She would never take that!
"I'm not going home, dad. I want to go with you to look for them," she told her father.
"Oh no baby... you are such a mess right now and I'm sure you don't want Jun to see you this way. So baby, go home and freshen up. Wear fine clothes and wait for us. I and them will meet you at home very soon," He promised
"Dad, are you sure?"
"Yes, baby. Now follow uncle and go home." Kim handed Mabel's hands to Kal "Kal please take her home. I will go search for them." Kim said to Kal and Kal nodded in understanding.
He took Mabel's hand and led her to the car. They both entered the car and they drove home.
Kim brought out his phone and called his secretary
"Hello boss." the Secretary replied over the phone
"Yes hello. .. meet at the tourist mall right away," he said and ended the call.