Erick’s dark face flushed red with excitement. He set down his wine pot, rubbing his hands together.
Daryl, a man who had been single for decades, swallowed hard. One had never found a wife; the other had lost his young bride because of his inability to have children. The temptation was too much.
The realization hit Rosemary and Sally like a slap. Their eyes darted toward each other. In a panic, they reached for their pockets, but before they could grab their phones, Erick and Daryl lunged.
"Brother," Erick said with a grin, "if we keep them, we won’t have to pay that 10,000 dollars."
Willie’s eyes widened at the suggestion, but it only took him a second to agree. "That’s a damn good deal."
Rosemary and Sally’s screams were muffled by the rancid socks stuffed into their mouths. They thrashed violently, but against three farm-hardened men, their struggles were useless.
Willie’s wife fetched hemp rope and tape. Within minutes, the women were bound and gagged, tossed like sacks of grain into the woodshed.
Their van? Driven away under the cover of night—sold in the city for an easy profit.
By dawn, Rosemary and Sally had been dragged back—one claimed by Erick, the other by Daryl.