Release me. Now. Or I tell them you kidnapped my daughter." "I already told you, we don't have your daughter. We have her mother. We only have your daughter if you come with us willingly." "We'll get her back. You can bank on it." "My friend, you're already dead." I look around. All the guys' watches are still on their wrists. The watch I am wearing on my left wrist only works in reverse. I am staring down the barrel of a gun. My mind flashes back to the gun I used to carry in Iraq. This is just like that, except the muzzle is pointing at my chest instead of the center of my forehead. "I have a daughter too. You touch her and you're a dead man. I promise you that. Now give us your gun and get on your knees." I get down on my knees on the wet pavement. The rain doesn't seem to bother my captors one bit. One of the men with the blue vests kneels in front of me. He pushes the barrel of the gun against my forehead. I am staring into the barrels of three rifles. "I promise you, you kill me and all the guys will come after you, friend," he warns. "Get up." I get up. [A long time ago, back when I was a teenager, I had a really bad time dealing with a problem. The problem went away on its own and has never returned. I don't have any particular reason to think that this is a problem that will recur. If anyone has any particular reason to think that this is a recurring problem, let me know. So far, all anyone seems to think it is is a one-time problem. -- Prothhomme] The First Part of the Worst Dream Ever By Kathy McCabe Kathy McCabe's email address is mccabefly(at)msn.com Over the years I have had dreams which have turned into nightmares. I have had nightmares which have turned into fantasies. This is one of those nightmares. I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed having it. I have been waiting a long time for this. There was a small dark opening, and in front of it a small group of people. The walls and floor were rough, as though I was underground. This is the first thing that stuck out in my mind right away. I was in a dank underground tunnel. I was in this passageway before, when I was a child. Back then, I used to take this tunnel, which led to a dirt road that joined the highway that went to the beach. I took this road whenever I could, to find a place in the shrubbery where I could watch the cars go by and the families walk by. At the end of this long, cold tunnel, was a small circle. A large, thick pipe, made from some unknown metal, stuck out of this circle of grass. I was sure this pipe was a drainage pipe for the highway. I was sitting in the dirt on the edge of the road, watching the cars pass, when a strange light started emanating from the pipe. It was a dark green. Like I said, it was deep underground, and the strange light cast a shadow over the road. It grew stronger as time went on. It grew stronger as I sat there, and slowly enveloped me, until all I could see were three black dots. They were the eyes of a snake. I ran. I took off running, and stumbled over some black metal rods. I hit them with my feet and turned around. The head of the snake was slithering towards me. It was only six feet away. I looked behind me. There was a grate on the floor that I remembered from earlier, when the pipe was still. There was a man inside that grate. A strange, tall man. He was wearing a suit and a mask. The mask seemed to be smiling. He was staring at me, waiting for me to get close enough to him to strike me with my own hammer. I picked up my hammer and walked towards the grate. The metal rod was digging into my heel, and I tripped over it. The grate slammed shut behind me and the man reached for me. I swung at him with my hammer. I hit him hard, but all I hit was metal. I swung again, but missed. The man turned his head. I could only see his white eye. He slammed