Just posted 12! Must keep going!!
Seth yawned. It was dark out now, and he was thankful the SUV had had a full tank of gas after leaving the gas station. The red truck in front of him had been swerving for a good half hour now. Seth had seen AJ go through about five beers so far and was now on his sixth, although Seth figured he must have been drinking all day as well.
XXX
Ryan had been silent most of the ride. Aside from the pop of beer can tops and the constant grumbling of the engine, the truck had been quiet for well over an hour.
"You know, Ryan," AJ spat, breaking the silence. "If you hadn't'a visited Dawn and gived her that restraining order, none of this would be happenin'." The man's words were slurring terribly, and Ryan took that as a good sign. "Er, better yet, if you'd'a just died. Then I could be in better spirits, and I wouldn't have your pretty little girlfriend here." He reached a large paw out for Marissa without looking at her. Ryan was quick to put his hand over Marissa's face, protectively. AJ caressed Ryan's hand without realizing it. Marissa turned and buried her face in Ryan's shoulder.
XXX
Seth was exhausted; it had been a ridiculously long and terrifying day. Once he caught sight of the truck's right turn signal, he straightened up and concentrated harder than he had since he had begun following them. The red truck pulled off the side of the road and began to wind down a few roads that appeared to lead absolutely nowhere. There were a few buildings every now and then. They all appeared abandoned. Graffiti covered every wall.
Fifteen minutes later, a large run-down, rusty-looking building appeared. The truck lurched to a halt. The lights went off.
Seth was quick to brake where he was, still a few hundred yards away. He put the SUV in reverse and settled for hiding it amongst the remains of an old junkyard. He hoped he wouldn't be too late.
XXX
AJ stumbled outside and slammed his door shut.
"It's going to be alright," Ryan whispered in Marissa's ear. "I won't let him hurt you."
They watched the man struggle with a heavy steel door.
"What about you? Please don't do anything dangerous."
"You have to understand something. He's doing all of this to hurt me. Once I'm out of the equation…" Ryan averted his eyes to the image of the half-drunk AJ stalking toward their door. As he yanked it open, he whipped the knife out from his underneath his belt. Marissa had tried to forget the knife, but how does one go about blocking the image of a blood-soaked weapon from their mind? AJ put it at Ryan's throat.
"Get out. Slow." Ryan did as he was told, without a sign of fear or hesitation. AJ switched the knife's position to Marissa's neck. He looked at Ryan.
"You try to run, fight, or be Superman, she'll end up in a puddle of her own blood." Ryan stood still. AJ hooked his arm around Marissa's and pulled her out of the seat. She quickly gained her balance on the gravel. "Now both of you. In that building. We're gonna walk slow, we're gonna walk together." Ryan nodded and waited for AJ to move first.
When they were inside the building, AJ flipped on the light switch and shut the heavy door, all the while keeping Marissa at his side and Ryan just a few feet away.
XXX
Seth raced to the back of the red truck. AJ was trying to get a large door open, and Seth ran without a second thought, knowing that hesitation would only take away more precious time. He squatted down behind the vehicle. He wanted badly to make a run to the side of the truck and free his friends, but AJ was turning around. He waited quietly while the three of them went inside the building. He became more afraid when the door shut because he had no way of knowing what was about to happen. But he was glad he had not been seen. He would have to figure out a way to get in without being caught. Or endangering Ryan or Marissa. But first, he needed to make a call.
As Seth made his way around the side of the building in search of an entrance, he punched in the only three digits his mind could process.
XXX
AJ stared at Ryan.
"Back up a ways, boy." Ryan obeyed. "As you can imagine, I really like how this is all turning out. You have always fought me on everything. I finally found your weakness. I got you doin' all kinds of shit. I bet if I told you to eat your own hand, you'd do it." He chuckled. Ryan remained silent. "I gotta admit, it's weird. You ain't even talkin' back. I never dreamed I'd be able to call you smart for anything, but that's somethin'." AJ spit on the floor. "I'd like to play a game here. I haven't finished makin' it up yet, but I know the main objective. I want to see Ryan in as much pain as possible without layin' a finger on him. I always hated you. And now I wanna see you suffer." He moved the knife slowly down Marissa's arm without breaking her skin. Ryan's breathing and heart rate increased exponentially. His face flushed of all color. "Where should I cut her? I'd hate to kill her before the fun's over. Organs are out of the question. Too early in the game. But if you so much as shift your weight forward, the game will end. Along with Marissa's life." He paused and smiled. "It's kinda sweet, isn't it? The same knife that I stuck in you is, I'm gonna stick in your girlfriend. Your blood with be with hers. I guess I'm just a romantic like that." Marissa wished she could be as strong as Ryan at a time when all she could feel was her own cold sweat and the cold steel of the dirty knife. AJ never took his eyes off the pale, terrified, broken Ryan.
XXX
Seth made his way through dead brush and scraggly weeds, tripping on fairly large, randomly positioned rocks, still in his search for a way into the building. He was about to consider scaling the walls and busting through the roof, when a window came into view. The glass was cracked, and the screen was missing. The entire window was caked with dirt and dust. Seth couldn't see a thing as it was. He carefully wiped away at the window with his shirt tail and peered in. Things inside the building appeared hazy and dark through the window's grime, but Seth could make out three solid figures and took a guess that the largest one was AJ, and the smallest was Marissa, leaving only one other figure; the one closest to the window. Seth slid his fingers beneath the window sill and attempted to open it. It didn't budge. He tried again, putting all of his strength into it. Still nothing. Not even the tiniest creak. There's a reason I don't try out for sports, Seth thought as he gave up and placed his face close to the glass. He held his breath and watched.
Woo! Two chapters in one night! I think that's it for tonight, though. But it'll give you plenty to read&review!! I've got a pretty good idea for the end, it'll be a real exciting, suspenseful, edge-of-the-seat, twist&turn, ah you get the point. Yeah, I'm hoping no one's expecting what's going to happen, but I did drop a couple hints. Anywho, hope to update to the end tomorrow!! Now that I have so much time…