Lauren Burns was dressed in a cheerleader costume for Halloween weekend in 1987 when she climbed into her father's car.
asserted
she → dress → car
But instead of taking her trick-or-treating, he drove the 7-year-old to the airport and flew her thousands of miles from her Dallas home.
asserted
he → take → home
Ali Bayan assured the little girl that the trip to his home country of Jordan was a "surprise" — and that her mother, Cathy Mahone, knew all about it.
asserted
mother → assure → it
But as days turned into weeks and her father refused to let her speak to her mother, Burns began to realize she might never return home.
uncertain
she → turn → mother
"I didn't think I would ever see my mother again," Burns recalled to Fox News Digital.
asserted
Burns → think → Digital
Burns recounts the abduction and the international rescue mission it sparked in her memoir, "Stolen."
asserted
it → recount → memoir
Her childhood friend, country music superstar Miranda Lambert — whose family played a crucial role in bringing Burns home — wrote the foreword.
asserted
family → play → foreword
Fox News Digital reached out to Lambert for comment.
asserted
Digital → reach → comment
"By the time I was six weeks old, my parents got divorced," Burns said.
asserted
Burns → divorce → time
WATCH: MIRANDA LAMBERT'S FRIEND RECALLS BEING KIDNAPPED BY FATHER AT AGE 7
"All I ever knew was that kind of upbringing.
asserted
I → watch → upbringing
I went between two homes.
asserted
I → go → homes
My mother had full custody of me when I was six weeks old, but she did not want to keep me from my father.
asserted
she → have → father
He was loving and kind.
asserted
He → love → ?
I saw him almost every other weekend or maybe extra if she needed help.
asserted
she → see → help
They had a good relationship despite the reasons that they had gotten divorced.
asserted
they → have → reasons
During the drive to the airport, Burns wondered why her stepmother and siblings weren't coming along.
asserted
stepmother → wonder → airport
"He'd never done anything to make me feel like I couldn't trust him," Burns said.
asserted
Burns → do → him
He was the one that loved me dearly.
asserted
that → love → me
So, if he tells me something, I'm going to trust him.
asserted
I → tell → him
But it didn't quite add up."
asserted
it → add → ?
Burns' parents met while Mahone, a Christian, was working as a waitress and Bayan, a Muslim, was studying engineering in Texas.
asserted
Bayan → meet → Texas
Mahone had full custody, but Bayan, who owned a restaurant in Dallas, saw his daughter regularly.
asserted
who → have → daughter
There were "no red flags," Burns said, until that Halloween weekend.
asserted
Burns → be → weekend
The Monday after Halloween weekend, Mahone went to Burns' elementary school to have lunch with her, as she typically did.
asserted
she → go → her
She expected to hear about her daughter's weekend of trick-or-treating with her father.
asserted
She → expect → father
Instead, she discovered that Burns had never arrived at school.
asserted
Burns → discover → school
She soon learned that her ex-husband had abducted their daughter and taken her to Jordan.
asserted
husband → learn → Jordan
A desperate Mahone rushed to a pay phone.
asserted
Mahone → rush → phone
She called the one man she believed could help her: Miranda Lambert's father, Rick Lambert.
uncertain
she → call → her
The former Dallas police officer ran a private detective agency with his wife, Beverly.
asserted
officer → run → wife
"Rick and Beverly were home," Burns said.
asserted
Burns → say → ?
"They got Miranda, they moved out of their house, and they were with my mom day and night trying to figure out a way to help my mom get me back.
asserted
mom → get → me
They were calling everyone they knew.
asserted
they → call → everyone
Rick pulled some strings and got an appointment at the Dallas County Courthouse, so my mom could try to get a warrant out for my father's arrest."
The Lamberts had known Mahone for years, long before Burns and Miranda were born.
uncertain
Burns → pull → years
Their friendship began when Mahone worked for Miranda's grandmother, Wanda, at an apartment complex.
asserted
Mahone → begin → complex
Until then, Burns had traveled only to Florida to visit her grandmother.
asserted
Burns → travel → grandmother
Now, the 7-year-old was in the Middle East, unable to speak Arabic and struggling to adjust to unfamiliar customs and a different way of life.
asserted
old → speak → life
"I had to cover my hair," Burns said.
asserted
Burns → have → hair
"I could not wear shorts.
uncertain
I → wear → shorts
We had to take our shoes off and wash our feet.
asserted
We → have → feet
…and 57 more, not listed.
The Aporia
