The three thugs had left them alone for a while. In the short distance they were away, Paul could hear the three talking amongst themselves as they continued to crack open and drink what was left of their beer. Paul had begun to lose the feeling in his hands through his constant attempts to twist and weaken the thin rope. The rope had thinned out but it bit into the soft flesh of his wrists like a snake. They must have been knelt in the ground for about an hour.

Shawn was back up onto his knees. He had refused eye contact from both Kate and Paul since the incident. His clothes were still damp from the beer onslaught and the smell was more prominent. Understandably, Shawn looked miserable. He had barely said a word. Kate had been similar. Her eyes had been trained on the three thugs since they had left the three hostages to their own devices. Paul pulled at his wrists again. As soon as they were loose enough, he could act. Steal the boat and get them out of here.

"How are your wrists?" Paul hissed to his two companions. Kate's eyes shifted from their captors and met Paul's. She tried her tug her wrists apart but the rope held them tightly together. There was no give in the rope at all. Shawn followed suite. His wrists too had very little give from the ropes.

"Are we just going to go along with them? What the hell is going on?" Whispered Kate as she ducked a little lower to ensure the thugs did not hear them. Paul frowned.

"What else are we going to do?" Shawn said quietly from his place near Paul. He lifted his head up and looked directly at Paul and into his concerned eyes. "They have guns. There's not a lot we can do like this."

"We'll be fine. They're on the run…" Paul looked over his shoulder at the rowdy trio. "Jewellery heist. It's gotta be… the bag was full of necklaces and shit. If something goes wrong, they need a hostage."

Shawn let out an exasperated sigh and his whole body shrunk into itself. He muttered something underneath his breath but Paul did not catch it. He was not sure if he wanted to. Paul shifted to his right nearer his husband. Their arms brushed.

"Shawn…" he whispered into his partner's ear. "I need you to keep it together. I might be able to get free but I need you clear headed and ready to act."

"Don't be stupid…" Shawn muttered. "They'll kill you."

"You're talking as if they're going to catch me." He forced a toothy smile onto his face in hope to alleviate some tension. It only made Shawn only frown in irritation. It was probably not the best time to crack jokes. Paul resumed a more serious face. "Shawn, I'm not going to let either of you get hurt."

"And I'm not going to let you get hurt. Just shut up and for once do what you're told to do."

Paul narrowed his eyes. "Shawn, trust me."

"No!" his partner hissed. His voice had raised more than he intended because almost instantly, Shawn looked over his shoulder at the captors. They did not glance over. His attention returned to Paul. "I mean… don't you understand the situation we are in? They have no qualms about killing us."

"But we can't just sit here either…" Kate whispered. For a millisecond, Paul had forgotten she was even there. He sucked his bottom lip between his teeth. This was more than just Shawn and himself at stake here. The previous conversation returned to his mind. The accusation. Was he selfish? Genuinely? Paul dropped his gaze to the ground.

"Go and get your head shot off then." Shawn snapped with enough ferocity to make their once non-nonsense guide recoil. Paul raised his eyebrow at his partner who only glared furiously back. Typical Shawn; If he was not crying, he was exploding.

"Why don't you calm down for a second? I know you're scared but shouting at her is not going to help."

"I am calm! You're the one who keeps going on about escaping when we're the ones kneeling in shit with guns trained on our skulls."

"But if we could get to the raft then I could get us out of here." Said Kate with sudden new found confidence. She lifted her chin and flared her nostrils; a woman on a mission was the first thought that crept into Paul's mind. A smile found its way onto the big man's lips. She was speaking his language.

"Exactly. They would be stuck on this island with no chance of escape until we turn up with a ranger." Paul twisted his wrists. He could feel the thin material begin to give way. His stomach burst into a butterfly like feeling. "We can do this. I can break free, free you and then get on the raft and just leave. It's that simple."

Shawn let out a long drawn grumble of irritation. "It's not that easy. They have weapons."

"If you're that bothered about weapons, I'll disarm them." Paul shot back. His patience had run as thin as the rope binding his wrists together. Shawn's mouth opened into a little 'o' shape. Paul narrowed his eyes at his lover, almost daring the big mouth to argue. Shawn closed his mouth and looked away. A new emotion swept over his features: this one of discomfort.

"So it's decided. We make a break for the raft when everybody is asleep." Kate confirmed. Paul nodded his head whereas Shawn made no motion to even acknowledge the statement. "It will be hard to navigate in the darkness but it's a risk we'll have to take. I can't promise we'll survive if the river is bad… but it's the better option."

Paul nodded his head. "I know… we know. It's the only option."

"Right then my little beauties, I think it's time we all went to bed." The drunken slur of the red haired captor drawled as his wobbly body advanced on the three captives. Paul frowned, how they had gotten into a situation involving these idiots was beyond him. On the brighter side: it might encourage them to sleep if they were intoxicated. Paul dabbed at his lips with his tongue.

"You're not going to leave us outside to freeze? I always knew you a gentleman." Paul said with an air of smarminess about him. Riley stopped in his tracks and scowled at the man.

"Don't push me queer. You and your boyfriend get the big tent with Beth because I feel like a kind person," Riley wiped his slobbering mouth with his bare arm. A twisted smirk curved his lips. "The woman and I will get the smaller tent. Nice and cosy."

Kate's face drained of any sort of colour as the words dripped from his mouth. Her heart hammered and within seconds she felt her entire body pulsate with sweat. Her body began to shake. Paul in turn felt his stomach turn. He rushed to his feet as the logic rushed from his body. Riley pointed a finger directly at his large nose.

"You want a round, big boy? He wants a round!" Riley hollered to his companions. Gaz turned his head in their directions. He almost looked gleeful when he noticed who 'wanted a round'.

Shawn stood up second. His chest huffed out as much as he was physically able to before he stepped in front of his partner. Riley chuckled coldly.

"You want a round?" Riley asked the retired wrestler who remained firmly rooted in his place.

"Nobody wants a round, kid. Call your mascot over here to beat on Paul then you can go a round with me." Said Shawn with an unnatural coldness which was unlike the temperamental man. Shawn was still. He just stood there, stuck in his position which had even gone to his lazy-eye. He looked bigger than what he was, almost imposing despite his bound state. Paul tilted his head to the side, he'd never seen this side of his partner before. The feral aggression was, in Paul's opinion, would have been almost kind of hot if circumstances had been different.

Riley facial expression read a blank. It was Gaz who appeared beside him who had the grin of a Cheshire cat upon his face behind the mass of facial hair. He crossed his beefed out arms over his chest and laughed. He towered over Shawn. Paul stepped around Shawn. The big guy did not tower over him.

"We've sat over here like good little hostages the entire night. We take a stand at rape and beatings." Paul said loud enough so his voice echoed against the surrounding rocks which encased their small island.

"If we want to beat you, we can." Gaz said with an air of simplicity.

"I suppose you can." Shawn answered. He side-stepped from behind Paul so he was (almost) shoulder to shoulder with him. "If you want to rape us, I suppose you can too. But not without a fight."

Gaz wrinkled his nose up behind his mass of beard. "Get in the tent and shut your mouth."

"She is not sharing a tent with him." Paul snarled.

"Yes she is." Gaz reached around the back of his cargos and pulled out the very familiar gun. He pointed it at Paul's forehead. "I've wanted to pop you all night. Give me a reason to. With the brute gone, we can just lug around those two. Make things helluva lot easier."

"Give me the gun…. I can pop him without a reason." Riley slurred.

"Nobody is popping anybody," a female voice blurted. Beth was just a few inches away from the party. "Just get them into tents."

"You cannot honestly condone this…" Shawn grumbled. His voice had gotten incredibly deep and more Texan as he spoke to his fellow kinsmen. "Don't let Kate stay with him."

All eyes turned on the shivering form of the guide. The bravado she had mustered was gone again, replaced with an all knew real terror. Out of element, out of control and at the mercy of mad men: a choked sob escaped her lips. Paul felt his stomach twist. He clenched his hands into tight fists behind his backs. He could break free now and fight them. Get shot and die. Paul sighed.

"She's with him and you two boys are with me. Gaz will be a martyr and sleep outside." Beth shrugged her shoulders. "There's no point arguing. Gaz, get them into their tents."

Beth held out her hand and soon the gun was moved from Paul's forehead and into her open palm. Gun in hand, she cocked the weapon and turned it on Paul. Paul opened his mouth to say something but was cut off when Kate screamed and Shawn snapped something coarse at the same time. He turned to look and saw each person lifted over a shoulder. Riley had slung Kate over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes and Gaz had done the same to Shawn.

"Move Lurch." Beth said simply. Paul did not argue.