Unusual Circumstances: Chapter 3

ThirdpersonPOV

The sun was setting as Rebecca climbed into the car. "I must have been in that trunk longer than I thought. I always figured panic would make time slow down not speed up. I wonder if Jenny has called the police by now. Dad probably doesn't even know I'm missing yet."

She made to pull her sweater closer to block the cold but forgot her hands were still bound. She got in, the door slamming behind her.

The inside was dim, so she didn't notice the other figure until she sat down. She started slightly when he flipped on a light, illuminating the small space.

She was surprised to see he didn't look much older than her, maybe 16 at most? He was extremely pale -like he hadn't spent nearly enough time in the sun- and he wore a dark suit. His hair was raven black and his eyes were a shocking blue. Those eyes were regarding her cooly.

Rebecca forced herself to look into them, not wanting to appear weak.

"Who are you?" she demanded.

He had to be the one in charge, as odd as that sounded. A kidnapper wasn't just going to bring some kid with him unless he had something to contribute, and he certainly wasn't old enough to drive the get away car. That was the giant's job apparently. Despite his apparent age, he had a commanding air about him that demanded attention.

He leaned forward slightly, his eyes narrowed, taking everything in: her defiant posture, at odds with eyes that screamed uncertainty and fear; her frazzled appearance; and her lips set in a determined line.

"Hello, Miss Anderson. I am Artemis Fowl the Second."

She got the impression that this should have had her shaking with fear. She merely raised an eyebrow at him.

"Isn't Artemis a girl's name?"

She noted with some satisfaction that this resulted in a spark of annoyance in his eyes and silently applauded herself the witty rejoinder, while the wiser part of her mind warned her against antagonizing the boy.

"It is most commonly a girl's name, but it can be a boy's name as well."

Her eyes wandered over to the driver's seat, and Artemis, seeing this, answered her unvoiced question.

"That is Butler, my, ah, butler."

Butler nodded to her through the mirror while Rebecca frowned.

She turned back to Artemis. "Why am I here? What do you want?"

He looked her over, considering. He decided to be partially honest.

"A friend asked me to do them a favor." He saw the look of fear that crossed her face at the prospect of more enemies and felt the need to reassure her.

"Don't worry, I doubt they have anything too unpleasant in mind. Actually, I'm rather curious. They do not usually dabble in this sort of business; it came as quite a surprise when they made this request. What on earth would they want you for? I did a little research of my own before agreeing and found that you don't have a file on any database. Not a speck of information to be found."

Rebecca interupted him."I don't have a file?"

He narrowed his eyes suspiciously. She appeared sincere about being unaware that there was no information her.

"My informant had your address, your name, your father's name, and your picture, but nothing else. When I did my own search, I couldn't find anything. Why is that? Have you been hiding from someone?"

He watched her reaction carefully and wasn't all that surprised by what he saw. She looked extremely bemused and uncertain. She obviously had no idea that, technically, she didn't exist.

"No, I haven't. I don't know anymore than you do."

Her brow furrowed and she voiced something that had been bothering her. "How did you know I was taking that road today? That alleyway was a dead end, so you couldn't have been following me on the other side, and I would have noticed if you had followed me before."

Artemis nodded as if he approved of the question. "We have been observing you from a distance for a few days now. Somehow, although you have no records, you were still able to enter a extracurricular contest. How that is possible I'm not sure, but I will find out. You placed which made you feel confident, and that confidence encouraged you to take risks. I guessed that you would take the shorter route and, obviously, I was right."

She stared at him incredulously. "And I thought those other kids were smart," she thought.

"So what now?"

Artemis brushed non-existent lint off of his suit.

"I will take you back to my home, where you will remain until further notice. If you behave yourself and don't cause any unnecessary grief, you will not be harmed. If, however, you try to escape or do anything that displeases me, we may have to take drastic measures."

He felt a small stab of guilt as her face drained of color and she shrank back in her seat. He knew he wouldn't really hurt her. For one thing, he didn't know if Butler would comply if asked. Kidnapping was bad enough but actual physical harm was another thing entirely. For another, he himself had changed enough that he couldn't bring himself to harm another human being, at least not an innocent one. He was mildly surprised at this revelation; the People must have done him some good.

But it would probably be best if she remained unaware of that. He had no idea what abilities she may have and needed to discourage her of using any of them. After all, the fairies wouldn't want her if she wasn't something special.

She opened her mouth to ask another question but was interrupted by a loud crack.

"What was that?" she asked, startled.

Artemis rose out of the seat slightly to look out the back window.

"D'arvit. Holly said something like this might happen," he murmured.

She frowned at the curse, wondering why it sounded so familiar, then turned her attention back to the window, still whole, but with a small crack spiderwebbing across.

"Bullet-proof glass. Why am I not surprised?" she thought.

There was a black sedan, about a hundred meters behind them but gaining. There was a gun poking out of the window.

"Friends of yours?" she asked quietly.

Artemis shot her a look. This new development seemed to have distracted her from her earlier fear.

"I have many enemies, but in this case, I believe they are here for you."

"Really?" She looked out again. "I had no idea I was so popular."