Free Love Condemned: Beginnings by Stephanie Brown

Her fingers were curled around Adrian's shirt, grasping the fabric as if it was the only thing she could hold on to. 
    Living it up at the Hotel California... such a lovely place , sang the mock voice in her head. Unconsciously, Miranda covered her ears.  Focus, Miranda. You can do this. Calm down. Control your breathing.  Two of the men mumbled something in Italian and walked out the door. Slowly, she sat up straighter, staring in turn at the two remaining people with guns. Alice was standing by the window and the other, the man with the two guns, stood by the door. They didn't seem to care one bit what the hostages were doing, as long as they didn't approach the exit. Miranda subtly turned to Adrian and in hushed tones told him what had passed. 
    "It's not just us, Adrian. The entire hotel had been shut down. All the doors and windows are locked, and more people have been taken hostage. Around fifty in total. And he made me call the police and read text off a piece of paper. They're the Red Brigades, or something.." she swallowed as she looked back and forth to ensure she was not drawing attention. She was not even close to the most horrifying part of the story. "Apparently, they were very active in the seventies and eighties. They wanted some kind of Marxist revolution then, and though everyone thought they had been exterminated in the eighties, a lot of them that fled to France" Miranda gestured toward Alice with her head, "and Spain. Now they have regrouped and found a new leader." 
    The Red Brigades, or   Brigate Rosse , had been a widely discussed topic during the Cold War, with their intense hatred of capitalists and the government of that time. Miranda didn't know much about them, but she read an article on the internet once. It said that they used to kill the major political pawns they thought stood in the way of the revolution. Miranda was very aware of the listening ears belonging to the rest of the hostages when she continued. 
    "They are keeping us here for ransom. That was what they used to do, and they want to do it again. They have about fifty people here, and I had to say.. I had to warn the police that... that they would kill two hostages each day they fail to pay the ransom money." 

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    Adrian had a sick feeling in his stomach as they took Miranda away. A range of thoughts passed through his mind. He did not know what was going to happen to her. ‘If they hurt one hair on her head…..’ Adrian thought. But what could he really do without getting himself shot? After Miranda was through the door, only two people were left in the room to guard them, one being Alice. It appeared they did not want any interaction with their hostages because they kept their distance and did not look at them.
    For some reason, the other hostages all looked to Adrian and quietly asked him what they should do . How should he know! And why was he elected to be the leader of the pack? Adrian motioned for them all to be quiet. When he was sure that nobody was listening, he told them, “Look. We need to figure out who these people are and what they want.  Just keep your eyes open and your mouths shut. And try to listen to what they say to each other.”
    Alice looked over his direction; he must have spoken too long. She continued to watch him carefully for a minute then she went back to the conversation with the man next to her and occasionally checked her radio. It seemed like a very long time before they brought Miranda back. She did not look good. Her face had lost all its color and a cold sweat was forming on her forehead. She went straight to him, grabbed his shirt and pulled herself as close to him as she could. Under any normal circumstance, he would have loved to have her do this. But right now, it was dangerous to show their connection but he wanted to make her feel safe.
    Miranda finally calmed down enough to tell him about the Red Brigade and that they were all being held hostage. Even more