but after the debacle at the new jersey mill , it was open season on the juiciest story to hit the headlines in a generation : eight-year-old heiress kidnapped , deafened in bungled rescue kruger-brent child mute after trauma fbi hero fights for life blackwell kidnappers still at large rumors that lexi had been abused , or even raped , reverberated around manhattan high society , adding a delicious frisson of excitement to the summer 's party circuit .