Second Time Around

- Chapter 22 -

~Brian~

I knew what I was talking about. They just didn't believe me. But I was right. It was going to be one of those 'I told you so' situations. But I didn't want that. All I wanted was to not go to the first floor. Because I had this feeling that if we did, something bad was going to happen.

"C'mon guys ..." I couldn't help the pleading tone in my voice. They just didn't understand.

This was the last chance. We were standing in front of a door in the stairwell that said Level 2. The next flight of stairs would take us to the first floor.

And that would be that.

End of story.

"No. Let's go, Littrell." Kevin's voice had one of those non-arguable tones.

"Bri, it'll be fine. C'mon." Even Howie was on Kevin's side.

"Why are you always in charge? How come we have to do what you say all the time?" I didn't bother with the fact that it was two against one now, so it was more like a democracy anyway.

"This is just my opinion on the matter."

"Then why doesn't my opinion count?" I demanded, holding onto the wall.

He and Howie exchanged a look. I hate that.

"Look, I know you're scared. I know he freaked you out up there, but this isn't going to help anything. We're wasting time as it is."

Wasting time.

Frank was getting closer every second we stood here.

"Fine, you guys go down wherever the heck you want but I'm gonna stay here," I answered, glancing at the door and pushing at it slightly. If they didn't want to believe me, then fine. Their loss.

But instead of an answer, I was physically caught and pulled away from the door. "We're not splitting up, we're going down to the first floor, no more arguments."

I tried pulling away from Kevin, but that's not a very easy thing to do sometimes. Especially when you're shaken up.

"Let me go," I objected. "Howie ..."

"Kev, just let him go."

Ha.

But Kevin still kept a hand on my shirt. Like I was going to take off. As much as I didn't want to go down to the first floor, if that was where they were going, then I was going to come too. Only because I didn't want to go off solo too much here.

"Okay, fine," I muttered. I knew I wasn't going to get my way. "Let's go."

"It's gonna be fine, buddy. You're just building it up in your head and scaring yourself."

"No I'm not, Kev."

But maybe I was.

As we got closer and closer to the end of the last flight of the stairwell, I felt my heart speeding up and I got this weird feeling in my stomach.

"You know this is the part in the movies when the music gets really loud and fast," I whispered. "And everybody sitting watching starts going 'Nooo don't open the door...', and then the stupid people in the movie open the door and whatever they were running from is right there ..."

Kevin just wrapped an arm around my neck, pulling me into a loose chokehold. "We're going to be fine," he said lowly. "Alright? I don't like seeing you getting worked up."

Well some things you just can't help.

"Alright?"

I nodded slightly and he let me go.

If he didn't like seeing me getting worked up he shouldn't have made me come all the way down here.

Howie pushed open the door and I cringed as it let out a creak. I got pushed out before either of them too, either I was bait or they wanted to make sure I was going.

I held my breath for a minute, looking up and down the hall both ways. It was empty.

"See, nobody?" Howie said, and his voice echoed slightly.

"Shh," I hissed.

The two of them just exchanged another look.

~Nick~

AJ was crazy. I was getting convinced of that.

I don't know if he was crazy the whole time, or whether that hit to the head outside the bathroom really made him lose it. Probably a bit of both.

Speaking of bathrooms. I turned my hands over to look at them and frowned. Still bleeding a little. I hoped we would get out of here before I bled to death.

"Still hurt?"

I looked at AJ and nodded, turning them back over.

"We'll have to get it checked out and make sure you don't have any glass in the cuts."

I made a face at him. Just thinking about that made me cringe. They hurt enough already.

"Guys, quiet."

I glared at the big man, and he just glared back at me, then turned away to keep talking on his phone. I didn't trust him. 'T' or whatever. He probably wasn't even the same guy that helped AJ before. I mean especially if AJ was crazy and all.

"Nicky, trust him," AJ said in a soft whisper. We were sitting in a hallway against the wall where T had politely told us to park it while he talked to who knows who on his little phone.

I hesitated. "I can't."

"Why?"

"I don't know ..."

"Don't you trust me?"

I nodded.

"Then if I trust him, can't you?"

"I don't know, AJ ... "

"Do I trust just anybody? C'mon, man. Don't be scared."

"I'm not scared," I lied, glaring at him.

"Yeah, well I am you little fibber. But I'm telling you-"

"Will you be quiet already?" the deep voice warned. T moved back closer to us, grabbed AJ by the arm, and slid him a good five feet down the wall from me. I made to move but the man held up a finger and I froze. "You stay put and be quiet."

I didn't answer. When I glanced at AJ he just sighed and shook his head. But the second T turned his back to us, I scooted back to AJ's side.

"You're gonna get your ass kicked," he muttered.

"I thought you said we could trust him."

"That means listen to him, don't piss him off."

"Yeah well I don't have to listen to him."

"Well then listen to me. Do what he tells you to do."

I glared at him.

"Nick, c'mon man, I swear to you-"

"Dammit to hell, guys. What the hell don't you understand about staying put and being quiet?"

My stomach sank because T really did look like he wanted to kick my ass. Maybe I should listen to him afterall. My eyes widened as he moved toward us again.

But he froze suddenly and glanced down the hall to the right as if he heard something.

"Hold up. I'm gonna check something out ... Stay."

We both nodded and watched as he jogged down the hall to go check it out. With it being quiet, I could actually hear something up that way.

I could tell AJ did too.

"Maybe we should hide," he said.

Sounded good to me. I heard voices suddenly. From the other direction too.

"That janitor's closet," I said, pointing across the hall a little ways. AJ nodded and we both got to our feet, moving toward it quickly.

We got the door open and looked inside. It was roomy enough. I guess. He pushed me in first and then came in behind me, pulling the door shut.

And that's when I regretted it.

It was pitch black in there.

I hated the dark.

Almost as much as I hated small spaces.

What a winning combo. I felt my heart speed up.

"AJ," I whispered unsteadily.

"Sh, it's alright. It's just me and you."

He knew I didn't like it in there.

"Just breathe easy, little man. We won't be in here long."

"Okay ..."

We were just gonna hang out until the coast was clear.

-

- Chapter 23 -

~Howie~

"Should we risk it?"

"It's not really risking much," came Brian's reply.

I stared down the hallway before us. Going further through the next door would take us to what was no longer considered the 'backstage' area. Meaning open to everybody. Meaning chance of riot. Chance of being stampeded to death. "Kev?"

"Bri's right, we don't have much else to lose."

"It's safer there anyway," Brian continued. "I mean, we'll be around more people. Right now it's just us and like ... people lurking. At least there we'll have security."

"Security's seemed to have disappeared," Kevin muttered. "But yeah. Pretty much. Wait though, hold up," he added as Brian seemed ready to go.

"Wait for what?"

"Plan?" Kevin looked at me.

"Now you want a plan," Brian muttered. "Alright, I have a plan. We go up there, look for a phone. Look for security. Get help, and get out."

"That simple, huh," I remarked.

"What more of a plan do we need?"

"We-"

A gunshot rang out from somewhere down the hall and we all jumped. It sounded kind of distant, but with a gunshot you can never be too far away.

"I like my plan," Brian said with a frown, starting to move. Kevin caught his arm.

"Stay close."

"You stay close."

"Wait, guys wait a second ..." I thought I had heard something.

They both turned and looked at me like I was crazy.

"What, you wanna see how close it can get before we die?" Brian asked with a frown.

"What is it?" Kevin asked, obviously ignoring Brian's comment.

"I thought I heard a voice..."

"Of a madman?"

"No, Brian." I shook my head, too busy thinking to let his comment bother me. "You remember that guy me and AJ told you about?"

They both looked at me as if they were trying to remember. Brian raised his eyebrows slightly but Kevin looked lost.

"The one with the letter for a name?" Brian asked suddenly.

I nodded. "Yeah, T."

"Oh ..." Kevin remembered. "What about him? You heard him?"

I nodded. That deep, deep voice. I would recognize it anywhere.

"That's nice, Howie, real nice. C'mon guys, let's go already."

This time both Kevin and me caught Brian.

"You really think you heard him?" Kevin repeated, keeping a hold on his cousin even after I had let him go.

I nodded.

"Positive?" Kevin insisted.

"Yeah."

"He's a good guy, right?" Brian asked. "Cause if you're thinking about going back there ..."

"You can wait here," I offered, but I regretted saying it after. I didn't want to go back alone either. I hoped Kevin would come with me.

"Well if you really think you heard him ... Why would he be here?"

"I don't know," I admitted. "But he helped us out last time. Maybe he just has a vendetta against Frank or something."

"Did you hear his voice before or after you heard the shot?" Brian asked.

"After."

"I guess it's possible that if he's after Frank he would be here," Kevin said slowly.

"I think we should go back and check it out. Just in case. He could help get us out of here."

"What do you think, Bri?" Kevin asked.

"I guess ..."

Kevin looked at me a second as if trying to decide. "Okay. Let's just go slow. It's not really smart to be heading in the direction of gunshots."

"I'm glad you at least realize that," Brian said. "I was beginning to get a bit worried there, Kev."

"Yeah well."

"So are we going?" I asked.

"I'm gonna stay here, alright?" Brian gave us both a look.

"Yeah pal, just don't go nowhere," Kevin said.

"I don't plan on it," came the smiling answer. Then he turned serious again. "You two be careful."

"We will. We'll be right back."

"With help," I added.

"Oh I hope so."

~AJ~

Nothing.

Silence.

There had been a gunshot five minutes ago up the hall, and I think we both stopped breathing. I didn't hear any more voices or anything.

"Nick?" I whispered.

"Yeah."

"You alright?"

"Yeah."

I leaned back against the wall, trying to ignore whatever was digging into my side. We had sat down and in the process of knocking over various other crap, I had been wedged up against a bucket or something.

"You think he's dead?" Nick whispered.

"T?"

"Yeah."

"No, I bet he's the one who shot somebody."

Nick didn't answer for a minute. When he did his voice was in an even softer whisper. "I know I didn't trust him much, but I hope he's not dead."

"I know, Nick."

"When he first went to check out the noise I was kinda hoping that something would happen to him but I take it back now."

I smiled slightly in the dark and shook my head. Did he feel guilty about thoughts? "I know," I repeated.

"If he's dead, I'll feel real bad."

"There's nothing to feel bad about."

"Yeah but if something happened to him."

"There's nothing we can do about that now."

"But still. I would-" He cut himself off.

"What?" I frowned in the dark and accidentally hit into something that made a clatter.

"Shh!" Nick hissed.

I waited a second. "What?"

But by then I heard it to.

"Footsteps," Nick said in a low whisper.

"Maybe it's -"

"Shhh ..."

"Nick, it might be T."

"It might not."

"But it might."

"Might not."

"Might-"

"Shhh. Please, AJ?"

I was quiet for a minute, listening to the footsteps move closer, pause, and continue on their way.

"Frack, if it's T he's not gonna know where we are. He'll think we took off."

Nick didn't answer.

"Nicky?"

"Yeah maybe, but if not's him then we're dead. Is it worth the chance?"

"We're gonna be stuck in here a million years, man." I shifted on the floor and knocked over the bucket. I heard whatever was inside of it fall out.

"AJ, be quiet," Nick hissed, hitting me. He's lucky he got only my arm.

"I am quiet."

"Then show me."

"Psh. We're gonna wait a little bit and then we're coming out."

"Coming out of the closet, AJ?" came Nick's reply. And he laughed.

"You're not funny." This time I hit him, none too gently and with better aim then he had had. I heard him let out an 'oof'. "At all."

He didn't answer. I shook my head. Let him sulk.

"Five minutes," I said.

"Fine."

-

Chapter 24

~Kevin~

We made our way down the hallway slowly and quietly, hanging to the side of the wall. It was quiet then, I couldn't hear any voices or noises from up ahead. It was too quiet. It made me nervous.

Howie kept glancing behind himself, as if to make sure I was still right there. I kept glancing behind myself to make sure no one else was right there.

Howie stopped walking abruptly and I had to catch myself before I collided with him.

"What's the matter," I whispered, touching his arm as I moved out from behind him to have a look.

"There's ... Uh. look there."

Damn.

My stomach sank at the view in front of us on the floor. To the side of the hallway, on the tile floor, a man in uniform lay with a growing dark stain on his chest, his head posed at a weird angle. His eyes were closed and his face was a pasty white.

I pulled Howie closer to me and glanced around, a little more anxious. I expected someone to jump out at us at any second.

"You think he was good?" Howie whispered as I kept a hold on him.

"That guy?"

"Yeah."

"I don't know, 'D," I said honestly. And I didn't know. A uniform didn't neccessarily make a good man. I swallowed and tried to keep my eyes off the sight of the guy. I pulled Howie away physically and tried to think.

"I think we should keep going," Howie said suddenly, interrupting my thoughts. "I swear I heard his voice, Kev. And if we can catch up to him that's our key out of this."

He was right. I nodded slowly.

"Alright," I agreed, keeping my voice low. "I trust you on this. Let's go so we don't keep Brian alone too long."

We started to edge down the hallway slowly again, trying keep our distance from the guy on the floor. I don't think either of us could help but stare, but it made us sick.

I got this weird feeling that we were being followed, but everytime I turned my head to look back, nothing was there. The hallway was empty except for the two of us.

"He shouldn't be too far," Howie whispered, glancing back at me. "I mean, if he shot that guy."

"If he shot the guy," I repeated, trying stress on the fact that someone else might be down here. I was suddenly feeling pretty uneasy about the whole thing. We were basically walking into fire.

Howie just looked at me for a second and then concentrated his attention on ahead.

Ten minutes later, I was getting frustrated.

"Howie?"

"Yeah."

"I'm thinking we should head back, bud."

Howie frowned.

We're not getting anywhere and Brian's sitting back there alone. If he's even still in the same spot."

"Yeah, but Kev if we can just find T ..."

"Well let's keep looking, we'll just head back to where we started from as we look, alright?'

Howie seemed hesitant, but I just shook my head. We were just getting further and further away.

"Okay," he said finally, and we started back in the direction from which we had come. I felt a little better, mostly because I had been starting to feel guilty for leaving Brian alone such a long time. The guy was freaking himself out enough with us there, let alone without us.

We just needed to get out of there. I was getting that followed feeling again, and I began to think that Nick's fears had finally rubbed off on me.

Nick.

I frowned as I got that kid on my mind.

"You know what's weird?" I said suddenly.

"What?"

"We haven't run into Nicky and AJ all." I was starting to make myself worry just thinking about the guys.

Howie was quiet for a minute, and I caught his frown. "Well they were supposed to be finding help too, I'm sure they would have gotten pretty far in the time we were upstairs," he said finally.

Always reassuring. "Yeah, you're right. They're probably pretty far."

~Brian~

I hated waiting.

Waiting was not a good thing. It made the mind crazy. In fact, wasn't it true that people who are alone for a long period of time go crazy? They start talking to imaginary friends and like eating bugs.

I shifted on the floor and wondered how far away I was. If they didn't come back soon I didn't know how much longer I was going to last just sitting there.

Maybe they forgot about me.

Actually that's what I was hoping more than the other reason they might be delayed. They could forget about me all they wanted as long as they came back eventually.

Preferably soon.

Very soon.

I layed down on my side and shut my eyes tightly. I just wanted this whole thing to go away. I wanted to do our show and go home. Go home and never have to think like this again.

Everytime I shut my eyes I felt the coldness of Frank's gun right next to my head and a chill went through me. I actually shivered. Just a millimeter away. If I hadn't moved ...

My eyes shot open and I took a deep breath, trying to calm my stomach.

I wasn't going to think about that, I wasn't going to think about that.

I just had to keep my eyes open. Another shiver went through me and I sat up slowly.

Alright, enough with waiting. They could forget me as much as they wanted but I wasn't about to just sit around and freak myself out. I would rather catch up with them.

They couldn't blame me for being lonely and scared, could they?'

I pulled myself off the ground slowly, using the wall for support. I hesitated a minute and then started down the hall in the direction Howie and Kev had gone. Eventually I'd have to bump into them right?

Or into someone else.

"Hey. Hold up."

I froze against the wall at the deep voice.

"Don't move, don't make a noise."

I wasn't about to. I squeezed my eyes shut and tried to keep breathing. Why was I so dumb, why, why, why. Why couldn't I have just stayed in the one spot. Why-

"Kid, hey kid." He hit my cheek, but not hard. My eyes flew open.

"You alright?"

No, I wasn't alright. I shook my head no, wishing I could disappear through the wall against my back.

"Listen to me," he started.

I was listening. I was trying hard to breathe too. Trying very hard to listen. I was-

"Hey. I'm not gonna hurt you, kid, relax."

Relax, relax. He wasn't going to hurt me. I tried to see if he had a gun.

"You listening?"

"Uh huh."

"I'm gonna help you, alright? What's your name?"

"Brian," I answered slowly.

"Alright Brian. You're with AJ and the blonde kid?"

"AJ and Nick. Yeah." I nodded slightly and tried to breathe steady. A thought hit me. "Wait, where are they? You know where they are?"

"I did," the man muttered.

"What do you mean, you did?"

"I did," he repeated annoyedly. "And if they had stayed where I told them to then I would still know where they were."

"Oh ... " My stomach sank. "Did you run into anybody else in the hallway?" This guy seemed kind of trustable. He hadn't shot me yet.

"Should I have?" came the response.

I just sighed. I was disappointed.

"What."

"Kev and Howie went to try and find some dude named T," I said, looking down at the floor. "Howie swore he heard his voice and that the guy would help us out or something. But that was awhile ago and they're not back yet so ..."

I looked up and the large man had an amused look on his previously hard face. I frowned.

"You're him, aren't you."

"You're pretty smart, kid."

I don't think he meant that. "So you're a good guy?"

He shrugged. "If you want to call it that."

"Did you shoot somebody?"

He just looked at me.

"Do you have a gun on you?" I asked cautiously.

He started to pull it out as if I had asked to see it, but I jerked back and away. No more guns. The man frowned and let his hand drop down.

"Yeah, I do," he said instead.

I stared at him, not even realizing I was moving back slowly until he caught my arm.

"Listen, kid, I'm on your side, alright?"

Alright. Sure.

"I want you to come with me."

"I can't," I said quickly. "I have to wait for Kev and Howie. They told me to stay in one spot."

"You weren't staying in one spot when I found you."

Good point. I hesitated.

"Come with me." His period of introduction was over and now he was all business. I sucked in my lower lip and glanced up and down the hall. No one else was in sight. Where the heck were Kevin and Howie?

"Just don't shoot me."

"I'm not gonna shoot you," he muttered, grabbing my arm. "C'mon."

-

Chapter 25

~Nick~

"One .... two ..."

"Wait," I interrupted in a whisper. I tried to listen.

The only thing I heard was AJ cursing under his breath.

"One ..." Now he was being loud. I frowned, expecting someone to shoot us through the door any second. He sighed. "Nicky, I would think you would want to get out of the dark already."

"I do." And I did. I really did.

"So what's the problem?"

"Well let's think about this, shall we?" I cleared my throat. "Let's weigh the options. Being in the dark ... or being shot. Being in the dark ... being shot. I don't know, it's a toughie. Which would you-"

"Two," he interrupted with an annoyed tone. I don't even know why he was counting off. Probably the sole reason of driving me crazy.

Well, if I was going to die, then I might as well get it over with. "Three," I finished, reaching up for the knob and shoving the door open.

There was a thud.

The door collided with something.

Something that cursed.

I screamed.

AJ let out a grunt as I slammed backwards into him to try and get away from whatever it was the door collided with.

Someone said, "What the hell" and I thought I recognized the voice but I was too busy falling because AJ and his grace had lost his balance when I barrelled into him and decided to go for a dive back into the closet. We landed in a heap among the various objects that had been invisible to us only moments before.

A hand pulled the door open wider as I held my breath and prayed my heart wouldn't explode.

Wait a second ... Kevin?

"Kevin!!"

"Nick?"

"Howie!" I squealed.

They were both right there!

I wondered if I was hallucinating. But no, Kevin was pulling me off the floor of the closet with a grin and as soon as I got to my feet I threw my arms around him tightly.

"What the hell were you doing in a closet? Playing seven minutes in heaven?" He hugged me back.

"More like eternal minutes in hell," AJ muttered as Howie helped him up. "Eternal minutes in hell with Nick."

"I resent that ..." I was attacking Howie with a hug next when I suddenly noticed something. I let go of Howie and hung back onto Kevin, frowning at him. "Where's Brian?"

"He's down the hall a bit," Howie said, throwing an arm around AJ. I nodded slightly.

It was all good.

Nothing to worry about.

I tried to convince myself that we could get out of there now.

"You guys are okay?" Kevin was asking. He had a hold on me now like he was never letting go.

"Pretty much." AJ shrugged. "You guys?"

"Yeah," Howie answered.

There was a moment of silence. We just stood there like we couldn't believe we were seeing each other again. I felt so relieved, like a weight had been lifted. But I wanted it to be over fully.

"Can we get out of here now?"

"I hope so, kiddo," Kevin said, giving me a squeeze.

"Is this over?" AJ asked. "I mean, is Frank gone? Is it safe?"

Howie and Kevin exchanged a look at his question and I frowned again. That was never good. "Why're you looking at each other like that?"

"Like what?"

"Like that," I repeated. I glanced back at AJ, but he was frowing too. I leaned into Kevin. "Why?"

"We're not even looking at each other, bro."

Yeah right.

"Can we go?" AJ interrupted.

Howie nodded. "Yeah, let's start to walk ..."

~Brian~

"Where are we going?"

Silence.

I must have already asked the same question at least three times, but either the guy didn't know the answer or he was doing a really good job of pretending he didn't hear me. Something told me it was the latter.

He was pressing the button for the elevator now and I was starting to get a little worried.

"Where are-"

"Garage, kid, alright?" He gave me an irritated look. "We're going to the garage."

"Why?"

"I think it's safer."

"Safer? You think?" I frowned.

"Yes," came the annoyed growl. I began to wonder whether he even had a plan or if he going on whatever he 'thought' was best at the moment.

The elevator light popped on and as the metal doors slid open I found myself being physically moved inside. I pushed against his arms but it was like pushing against a cement wall. The man didn't move.

"Howie and Kev will kill me if they come back for me and I'm not there," I tried, but he was pressing the button on the panel for the garage level and the doors were already closing shut. I pushed the 'Door Open' button desperately and they started to open again.

T pushed me roughly and I fell back against the wall of the elevator. "Do that again and I'll hurt you."

I stayed there, staring at him.

"Listen kid, you have more things to worry about than your buddies being mad at you. Don't be an ass."

I didn't answer.

"If you want, I'll go back up and look for them after we get set down here."

"What about me?"

"Stick where I tell you to and you'll be fine."

Alright. I nodded slowly.

The elevator dinged to announce our arrival at garage level and the metal doors popped open.

"Stay here a minute," he said, pushing me back as I started out with him.

"Don't push me."

"If anybody but me comes, shut the doors," he directed, pushing me again. I narrowed my eyes.

Once he was gone, my mind started going nuts. Now was my chance to escape, to get back to Kev and Howie. Honestly, I didn't know whether I could trust this guy. I mean, he could be lying to me the whole time.

None of it was true.

He wasn't going to go back for the guys.

The only reason he was checking that no one else was down here was so he could shoot me freely.

I swallowed and felt my heart speed up as a cold chill swept over me. I was starting to make myself panic and wish I had some sort of weapon.

"You didn't take off, good job."

He was back.

"C'mon," he said, pulling at me. Then he paused. "What's the matter?"

"N-nothing."

"Did you see somebody?" He glanced behind himself, and I shook my head. "No one else is down here, kid. Let's go. Watch your step."

The added warning was due to the two bodies sprawled in wet redness on the cement floor only a few feet from the elevator doors.

I swallowed, suddenly feeling sick.

"You said nobody else was down here ..." My voice was caught in a whisper.

"Well, they're dead, Brian. I didn't go around counting the dead onces." His voice was sarcastic.

"There's more?" I tugged away from him, away from the bodies. I'm not staying down here, no way."

"It's safer." His gruff voice was slow and steady.

"I'm sure they thought that too." I shook my head quickly. "Half the people down here are dead!" My voice was getting louder and it echoed off the damp cement walls.

T clamped a hand over my mouth. "Shut up."

I couldn't answer but I fought to pull away from him as hard as I could. The man didn't even budge from his stance.

"You done?" he asked gruffly after I had paused in my stuggle. I had only succeeded in tiring myself out.

I didn't answer. I couldn't anyway, his hand was over my mouth.

-

Chapter 26

~Kevin~

Almost out of here, almost out of here. I kept repeating it in my head, as if saying it a few times would force me to believe it. I wanted to believe it.

It was a major relief, to say the least, to have AJ and Nicky back. And in one piece. As far as I could tell, aside from being as shaken up as the rest of us, they seemed no worse for wear.

As long as we all got out of here okay I could count myself lucky.

"Too bad the A-Team isn't here," Nick muttered softly.

"Charlie's Angels," AJ threw in.

"The Mob Squad." Howie sighed.

They all seemed to look at me then for my two cents so I shrugged. "Batman?"

There was a collective groan.

"Batman's not real." AJ gave me his 'duh' look.

"He's as real as Charlie's Angels."

"He's a fictional character."

I wasn't going to argue. The kid had his own logic.

"Oh well, at least Kev knows Kung-fu."

"I don't know Kung-fu, Nicky."

"You don't?"

"No ..." I couldn't tell if he was serious or not.

"Oh. I guess we're screwed then, huh?"

Guess so.

"Oh shit. I'm gonna be sick. Man. God! Ugh!"

I looked up sharply at AJ's sudden outburst and it was only when I saw it again that I remember the uniformed body we had to pass in order to get back to Brian. It was just as shocking seeing it again as it had been the first time and I almost had to fight a gag reflex.

"I'm gonna puke," AJ repeated, and he sounded pretty weak too. I caught his arm and pulled him to me loosely.

"Don't look, Aje, we gotta pass it so just try to ignore it."

"Ignore it? Ugh," he moaned, but his shrugged his shoulders. His brown eyes looked disturbed.

"C'mon, Nick," I heard Howie saying. When I looked back at the two of them, Nick was staring hard at the wall.

"Is he sick?" I asked. Howie shrugged and gave me a helpless look. "Nicky, c'mon, baby," I tried. "Just don't look and it'll be past before you know it. Alright?"

He shook his head.

I felt stuck. I breathed in slowly, trying to make my muddled brain work. It felt like I was stuck in some sort of twisted nightmare.

"Howie, why don't you start ahead with AJ? Me and Nick will catch up with you."

Howie nodded silently and I moved toward Nick as the two of them started past the distraction. I winced when I looked at the image again but quickly averted my eyes.

"Nick."

He glanced at me for a quick second but then was staring at the wall again.

"C'mon, pal. It's just like one of those horror movies on TV you always watch."

"It's not a movie." The statement was directed to the wall.

"I know that, kiddo. I don't know what to tell you. But I want to get out of here as much as you do, alright?" I sighed. "C'mon, bro, I'm doing it too."

He shrugged his shoulders.

"Brian's waiting."

That got him.

~Brian~

"Here."

I turned and froze.

A gun.

He was holding a gun out to me.

I stared at him. I knew where he got the extra too- off of one of those guys we had passed back by the elevators. The thought of even touching it made me sick.

"I want you to have it just in case."

"I don't want it."

"Put out your hand."

"I don't want it." I took another step backwards and felt the cement wall behind my back this time. I was almost glad for the support it offered.

T looked like he was at the end of his patience. "If somebody comes while I'm gone I want you to shoot them."

"I'm not gonna shoot anybody, man. Uh-uh." I shook my head at him, frowning. "I'll just hide."

"Look." He grabbed my hand before I even blinked and wrenched it out in front of me, pressing the cold metal weapon into it. "Take it, alright?"

"I'm not shooting anybody," I repeated softly, looking him straight in the eye.

"All you do is pull the trigger. Right there. And see, kid, you should trust me now, I'm putting a loaded weapon into your hands. Do you trust me?"

I shook my head. Slowly though, because I wasn't really sure.

"I'll be back in a short time. Stay right here." He released my hand and the no longer supported gun fell to the ground with a noisy clatter. I jumped, expecting it to go off. Ever since the close call with Frank in the bathroom I wasn't taking any chances.

"I'm not using it."

"Well just leave it there then, shorty. If somebody comes you better use it before they use it on you."

I swallowed. "Be fast," I told him.

"I will."

"And bring back everybody."

"I'm aiming for it, kid."

I nodded. I almost trusted him. How could I not? He disappeared back in the direction of the elevators and I stared at the shiny metal gun at my feet.

It was ugly.

I leaned my head back against the wall and tried to breathe in deeply through my nose. I was feeling sort of dizzy. I couldn't get the image of the bloody corpses out of my mind, no matter how hard I tried to think of other things.

I tried to think of the guys. I couldn't figure out how it was that I got left alone in this. I should have gone with Kev and Howie when they wanted me to. Now look.

I was an idiot.

Such an idiot.

I wondered where I was going to be tomorrow. Or even the rest of the night. A sudden chill went through me.

I glanced back down at the object at my feet and gave it a tentative kick with my foot. It made a scraping nose against the light concrete. I didn't want to pick it up. Did he really expect me to?

I just had to hope that no one else would venture down here before T returned. I almost missed the big guy already. As much as I may not have trusted him, he was at least some sort of protection.

Right now, I had no protection at all.

And then, I thought I heard a noise. I held my breath and waited. Was it the elevator? T wouldn't be back so soon, would he? I swallowed and tried to listen, keeping my back against the wall. I was afraid to move.

-

Chapter 27

~Howie~

The hall was empty.

We had come around the final corner and no one was there. At first I thought I didn't remember correctly. I tried not to get worried and had almost had myself convinced I was wrong when Kevin and Nick caught up with us and I heard Kevin's opinion on the matter.

"Oh shit."

Then my stomach sank.

Brian was gone.

"Oh shit what?" I heard Nick say as AJ elbowed me.

"What is it?"

I swallowed uneasily and glanced at Kevin. He looked up and when our eyes met I saw a look of fear.

I sucked in a quick breath. Damn.

"Howie ...? This is where we uh ..." Kevin hesitated and I just nodded reluctantly, watching as the little trace of hope left Kevin's eyes. Yeah, this was where we had left him.

"Where what?" Nick demanded. He looked at me and then back at Kevin, obviously getting irritated at the increasing seconds of silence. What were we supposed to say? A million thoughts ran through my head, and I didn't want to be the one to say it first. "Where you what?"

"Shit," Kevin repeated again, and I watched as he leaned against the tiled wall and sank down to the floor slowly. He massaged his temples and ran a hand through his hair anxiously.

"Howie, what the hell." AJ looked at me with a frown. "Are you gonna say anything?"

I didn't know what to say.

Nick dropped down next to Kevin on the floor and grabbed his sleeve. "Kevin." He started to tug on his arm but the older man just shook his head in warning and Nick stopped.

"Maybe he came to find us, Kev," I said softly.

Nick's head shot up. "What?" His blue eyes blazed at me from the floor. "He? You mean Brian?" A sudden realization seemed to transform his face. "This is where you left him? Is that it?"

I nodded slowly, still not saying anything, and Nick's angry gaze sank to the floor.

"Wait up," AJ spoke up. "So you left him here? Right here. And he's not here now."

"Bingo," Kevin said from the floor tensely.

"Where is he?" Nick was starting to panic. I was starting to freak. AJ was starting to pace. "Where the hell could he go?" Nick continued. His voice broke and I started hoping he wasn't going to cry. "Kev, where could he go?"

Kevin shrugged his shoulders and rubbed his face with his hands tiredly. He was silent. "I don't know, baby. I just don't know."

"You don't think ... I mean, Frank couldn't-"

I elbowed AJ gently and he cut off mid-sentence, sending me a look. It was a mix between worry and 'don't elbow me'. He started pacing again.

"We gotta find him, we gotta look for him," Nick said desperately. He started to get up but Kevin finally raised his head and grabbed the back of his jeans to pull him back down.

"Lemme think, Nick."

Nick just nodded through his worried daze and kept still. I tried to think myself and still only I came up with two possible scenarios. One, Brian had given up on us coming back and had gone to look for us himself. Or two, Frank had come.

I think we were all thinking the same thing.

"So what're we going to do?" AJ stopped his pacing.

We all looked to Kevin, like we always looked to Kevin, expecting him to have some sort of answer. I had never known him to not have some sort of answer.

I was almost beginning to worry that this time might be different. Then he spoke.

"We'll look," he said finally, straightening up. "And I swear to God if we don't find him-"

"We'll find him," Nick interrupted. And I could tell he was desperately trying to believe that. "We're gonna find him."

Kevin nodded absently, ruffling the kid's hair slightly before pulling himself off the ground. "I know."

We started in some direction, I think the direction that we had just come from, and I tried to get my mind off the idea that Frank might have something to do with Brian's disappearance. But we hadn't been gone that long, had we? And we hadn't been so far that we wouldn't have heard had he called for us.

"Howie?" AJ asked softly, moving in next to me.

"Yeah?"

"Do you think he just went looking for you guys? And that we just didn't run into him?"

I glanced at him and felt a tightening in my throat as I saw how his brown eyes betrayed his fear. I nodded slightly, sucking in a breath. "Yeah ... that's what I think."

AJ seemed to think about that for a minute. "So do you think-"

"Hey," a deep voice suddenly interrupted from behind us.

We all froze.

"Oh no," Nick muttered as we turned around. It was T. I felt a wave of relief wash over me suddenly.

"That's T," I whispered to Kevin. He nodded slightly as the larger man approached.

"Hey," he said as a short greeting. "C'mon. The cops should be here shortly and Brian's downstairs."

"Really?" Kevin looked relieved.

"What'd you do with him." Nick's voice was accusing.

"Nothing, kid. C'mon, let's go."

~Brian~

The noise.

It was like a mechanical grating, the sound of the elevator. I held my breath as it stopped and footsteps picked up its sudden silence.

Maybe it was T. Maybe he was back. But if it was him then that would mean that he hadn't found the guys, because there was only one person's steps.

Hollow, echoing steps.

I inched along the wall, sliding my hands along its rough cemented surface for some kind of support. When I reached the end I just stood there and listened.

The footsteps were moving away, and then back. Like they were looking for something. That was how I knew that it wasn't T- he knew where I was, and he wouldn't have to look for me. This guy seemed to be checking if anybody was down here.

Which would mean he would probably come across my spot pretty soon. I warily looked around the corner and froze at who I saw.

Frank.

Shit. The feel of the gun against my head in the bathroom came back to me and I suddenly felt really dizzy. My legs got this weak sensation. Oh God. I made a quick prayer to him not to let me die.

I swallowed quickly and started cautiously back to my original spot, trying not to breathe or make any noise. My heart was going to explode any second, I could feel it coming.

Alright, Brian, think.

I couldn't stay in my spot, I had to move. I looked around frantically for some place to go, and my eyes caught on the main part of the garage where there were rows upon rows of cars. It was as good a hiding place as any. Looking for someone in there would be a maze.

Okay then. I just had to move.

I was working up the guts to take the sprint when my eyes caught a glimpse of the dark gun on the floor in front of me.

I had almost forgotten about the thing. It was staring at me with this taunting 'take me, take me' sort of look. I swallowed again. I didn't want to touch it. I really didn't. But if something happened, maybe it would be better to have it just in case?

T's words about using it before somebody used it on me soon echoed in my head and I shut my eyes for a second, quickly deciding. I would take it. Just in case. What was the harm.

I picked it up carefully, trying to holding it in a way that would have my finger as far away from the trigger as possible. It felt cold and unnatural in my hand, but I forced myself not to drop it.

The footsteps were getting louder now, and I took a deep breath before I quickly made the dash from the safety of my wall and into the soup of cars.

I held my breath, almost expecting the footsteps to race after me, but their pace stayed constant. He hadn't noticed. That was a relief at least, and as I slowly made my way through the cars I could almost breath a little more confidently. I rested my free hand against the side of an SUV and moved along slowly, trying not to make any noise.

From where I was now I couldn't even hear the sound of the elevators. Everything seemed to echo over.

I was nearing the end of where cars were parked when I heard a noise. A shuffle, a footstep.

Shit, he was right there. I felt my hand tighten on the gun nervously and wiped my forehead with my sleeve. Oh man, oh man. I looked down at my hand and shut my eyes as I moved my index finger up to the trigger. I didn't even know what I was doing.

Then there was the sound of a heavy footstep less than ten feet away and I shot by accident before I even saw who it was. My hand was shaking and my finger just pressed and it went off. I screamed simultaneously and so did the person, and as I let the gun fall from my hand I looked up.

Nick.

The gun was still clattering on the cement floor when I recognized his face behind the car. Shit.

My legs suddenly gave out and I grabbed on to the side of the van next to me before I sank to the ground. My face probably looked a lot like Nick's- sheet white with an open mouthed look of shock.

"Brian?"

Dear God. My stomach felt like I had dropped twenty stories. I almost killed him. My best friend. I shot at him. I almost shot my baby brother. I couldn't move.

And then a whole load of shots rang out and I instinctively ducked behind the hood of the van. I raised my head to call to Nick but right as the words left my mouth, Frank had grabbed him and had a gun to his temple. Oh God.

-

Chapter 28

~Nick~

Oh God, oh God, I couldn't breathe. I squeezed my eyes shut until it hurt and prayed for it to go away. But it wasn't going away, and the cold metal pressing into the side of my head was making me nauseaus.

And I kept hearing the shot, the empty hollow sound echoing through my mind, that came from Brian. Brian had a gun. I squeezed my eyes shut harder until I saw red.

"Shut up," somebody hissed into my ear. "Shut the hell up."

The pressure against the side of my skull grew even harder and I heard this faraway whimpering sound. It took me a second to realize it was me.

Voices, I heard voices. Arguing, whispering, and then the voice in my ear was yelling. Telling somebody to shut up. To be quiet or he was going to shoot.

I heard Brian. Talking, he sounded scared. I tried to make out what he was saying, but then the gun came off my temple and the voice in my ear was screaming at him to shut up. To be quiet or he was going to shoot.

I waited for the explosion but I heard nothing.

No shot, no Brian, no nothing.

There was this weird rush through my head and then the pressure was back on my temple, digging into me. I felt a burning in my eyes as the tears came. I was going to die. After everything it was going to be over right here, right here.

Nothing was happening, I still heard the voices but they weren't making any sense. I opened my eyes for a split second and the room was spinning. I saw movement.

And then I was being pulled, but my feet weren't working.

"Move, dammit," the voice in my ear was growling. "Move or I'm gonna shoot you. Do you want to be shot?"

I couldn't answer him. I tried to say something but it was like it was no longer me, and I couldn't tell myself what to do. I was stuck there.

"Nobody move!" the voice yelled. I felt somebody else with me and then there were hushed voices.

" ... the perimeter ..."

"- flashing lights," came a murmur. " ... any second."

"Hold them off," the voice in my ear argued, and I realized the hushed voices were partners, associates. I heard them move away but I didn't want to open my eyes.

Oh God, oh God.

"Shut up," was hissed in my ear. Crazy, he was crazy.

I didn't even realize I was making any noise. I felt pain suddenly and realized I was clenching my fists, including the sliced up one. I quickly opened my hand and looked down as best I could, seeing blood.

My head suddenly grew light.

~AJ~

All hell had broken loose.

I don't think much else could have possibly gone wrong from the moment we stepped off the elevator and into the garage. I didn't know where to step next, it was so crazy.

They had Nicky, we had gotten split up, and I had no clue what the hell to do next.

And then I saw Brian. Even though all the shit was going on I smiled involuntarily because I was so glad to see him. He was okay. As of right now, we were all okay. I started to move through the maze of cars, keeping low. I finally got close enough to touch him, and when I did, he screamed.

"Bri, Bri it's me." I covered his mouth out of impulse and moved so close our noses almost touched. "It's me," I repeated in a whisper, bringing my hand down.

"AJ." He sounded so relieved, and the next thing I knew we were hugging. I don't know who had moved first. He pushed me back then, holding my sides and studying me carefully. "You alright?"

I nodded silently and almost felt like breaking now that I had somebody to lean on. But Brian looked like he needed somebody to lean on too so I didn't let go just yet.

"Man, we gotta do something."

"I shot him."

"What?" I thought I misunderstood his words.

"I shot Nicky."

My eyes widened and I quickly glanced over to the side where Frank had Nick in a hold. The kid didn't look hurt in any way so I was a little confused at Brian's statement.

I jumped when I heard a scraping sound and looked down to see he had kicked at a gun on the ground.

"T gave it to me and I wasn't gonna take it but I did just in case 'cause Frank was down here. I heard a noise ..." He trailed off shakily.

"But you missed," I said. Thank God he'd missed.

He shrugged, not seeming convinced.

I shook my head and took a deep breath. "C'mon man, we gotta do something. Any ideas?"

"We have to distract him."

"Yeah ..." I thought for a second. Distraction, distraction. "Wait, I got it." I tried the handle of the car next to me but nothing happened. He gave me a funny look. "Set off a car alarm," I said. "It'll sound like sirens."

Brian nodded, moving down a line of cars and trying each one. I watched him a second and then started down a different row myself, grabbing at each handle.

I jumped about a foot when the car behind me let out a deafening honking that soon exploded into a siren alarm. Mercedes. Nice going, Bri. I crouched down lower and peered over the hood of the car in front of me, in the direction of Frank and Nick.

It had worked. For now at least. I think Frank's schizophrenia had him convinced that the alarm was real live police and he had basically flipped out and dropped his gun. Even though he was still holding onto Nick the threat of the gun was at least gone.

A hand suddenly touched my arm and I jerked away in surprise.

"Easy." It was Brian. "Do you hear that?"

I nodded and gave him a tiny smile. "Yeah man, nice going."

"No, no. Not that siren. Listen."

I listened for a minute with a frown and sure enough, there were other sirens over the sound of the car alarm, quickly getting louder and louder.

Real police.

"Saved," Brian whispered.

"Took them damn long enough," I muttered.

And the next few minutes were a rush that I can't even remember too clearly. All I knew was that about three cop cars sped into the garage at breakneck speed, breaks squealing to a halt as Brian and I watched with round eyes. Frank looked like a deer caught in headlights.

Then some shots rang out and all within a minute Frank was on the floor and the cops were moving in. It all happened so fast that nest thing I knew there were cops by me and Brian, grabbing us, talking to us in calming voices.

"Lemme go," I objected, resisting the older man that had a hold on me. Heavy hands fell on my shoulders and I instinctively twisted away.

"Aje, it's me ..."

"Kev?"

"You alright?"

I nodded through my daze and let him pull me into an embrace. I hugged him back tightly. As soon as I pulled back he cupped my chin with one hand and made me look at him.

"You sure you're alright?"

I nodded again and he dropped his hand. I watched as Kevin pulled Brian into a hug that lifted him about a foot off the ground. "Where's Nicky?" I started. "Is Nicky okay?"

People were nodding.

"Where's Howie?"

"Behind you," I heard Howie's voice say.

And it was over.

-

Chapter 29

Two weeks later

~Kevin~

Dream-filled, haunted nights.

I rolled over in my bunk and stared up at the ceiling with heavy eyes. It only took a minute before your mind would shift to that certain thing, and you'd start to sweat, start to breathe a little heavier. It was almost involuntary.

Sleep seemed out of the question. The dreams stole that away. It had been almost two weeks now and I was beginning to feel it wear on me.

I rubbed my eyes tiredly, propped up my pillow a little more, and gave up on it. My watch read 1:36 am. I listened to the humming sound of the tires on the highway, felt the vibrations beneath me, and shoved open the curtain to my bunk. I gave up.

By the sounds of the TV in the back, it sounded like I wasn't the only one that had given up either. I was almost afraid that the whole non-sleep thing was becoming a little too routine.

I made my way to the back of the bus and stopped in the doorway. It looked like everyone had given up tonight. The four of them were sprawled over each other on the long couch back there, tired eyes glued to the TV. It didn't look like sleep was a prospect any time soon.

"Having a party without me?" I spoke finally, entirely regretting it when they all jumped in surprise and Nick actually let out a cry. I frowned and moved out of the doorway. "Sorry," I said quickly. "Did I scare you?"

"No," Brian lied promptly, making room for me next to him. As I squeezed in beside them and accepted the offer of sharing a blanket, the thought crossed my mind that there hadn't been one night in this whole two weeks that I hadn't awoke and taken part in this routine.

Not a good thing. I pulled Nick to me and rubbed the back of his blonde head absently. "Guys, I think we should really talk ..."

"Not during I Love Lucy," AJ objected softly. Alright then.

"When's it end?"

No one answered and when I looked at the bottom of the TV screen I knew why. The words 'I Love Lucy Marathon' scrolled across in bold letters. Nice try, AJ.

I shook my head and leaned across to peel the remote control out of Howie's hand, flipping off the TV. There was a sudden silence, the whirring road the only sound.

"We can't keep doing this, guys."

"Doing what?" AJ asked with a frown. He knew exactly what I meant.

I rubbed my eyes tiredly. "This. Coming in here every night."

"I like coming in here every night," Nick countered, looking down at his bandaged right hand absently.

"No you don't."

"Yes I do."

"No, you just don't like trying to get to sleep."

He didn't answer.

"Everything's fine, Kev, we just didn't wanna miss the Lucy marathon," Brian told me. I don't know how the kid kept a straight face, but he did.

"Brian-"

"And you're making us miss it," he continued, pulling suddenly at the controller that rested loosely in my hand. I quickly tightened my hold on it and gave him a warning look. We had gone this far without talking, we were going to talk.

"Look guys, it's me too, alright? I can't sleep either. We can't keep doing this."

"Yeah well we always thought you needed therapy, Train," AJ answered in a joking voice. I rolled my eyes.

"If I were sitting next to you right now you'd be hurting, Aje."

"Glad you're not."

"Well so what're we supposed to do," Howie said. He looked at me for an answer and I suddenly wasn't too sure what to say. I had wanted to talk this over, and now that we were, I wasn't so sure what I was supposed to say. I was in the same boat as they.

"That's the thing, what can we do? We all know this shit is over, it's not gonna happen again-"

"That's what we said last time," Nick interrupted. "We said that after last time and look what happened."

"Yeah," Howie agreed. "But this time is different. There's nobody that can come back. I think that's what we have to convince ourselves."

"Right, it's over. And we all came out of it okay ..."

There was a moment of silence and I guess we were all arguing in our heads whether we really were all okay.

"You know what I keep thinking." Brian surprised me by speaking up suddenly, even though his voice was really quiet. "I keep thinking that I almost shot Nicky ..."

I sighed, wrapping an arm around his neck. I think we had been through this every day, but he still couldn't get the guilt out of his head. "But you didn't, buddy. Nobody's blaming you for anything."

"Forget it, Frick," Nick added, and I had to give him credit for that because I knew it was bothering him too. I realized that this whole thing was going to take a long time. And I had a feeling this wasn't going to be the last of our sleepless nights.

"Kev?" AJ sounded tired.

"Mm?"

"Can we just watch TV again?"

Why not. At least we had talked a little. The TV would at least would put us to sleep eventually. I flipped it back on with a sigh just as Ricky Ricardo was coming through the door.

"Lucy, I'm ho-ome."

THE END