A/N: I just want to quickly give a MASSIVE thanks to everyone reviewing this story. I'm really surprised that so many people like it! It's going to start getting a bit more action packed now, so I hope you still enjoy it just as much :D

Nineteen:

To New Depths

Gary couldn't remember the last time he had had this much fun. Making other people's lives miserable had always thrilled him, and so far he had thought torturing idiots like Fido had been as fun as it got. But the look of complete terror in Owen Mansfield's pretty-boy eyes and the petrified cold sweat that clung to his brow made Gary feel warm inside. More than a little warm inside, actually. It felt like there was a fire in his belly. It took all his energy and willpower not to laugh hysterically.

Although Petey was bringing him down. He hadn't expected Femme-Boy to scoop up a kitchen knife and hop to his side, but he hadn't expected him to be so whiney. They were practically fugitives now; there was no time for whining and being considerate of others. Didn't he understand that if they let Owen go he would go straight to the cops? A race with the cops would be exciting, but not this soon. Maybe a little later.

'Gary…' Petey said tentatively, still lingering by the window. 'Can we just get this stuff and get out of here? He's not going anywhere.'

Gary looked towards Owen, still fiddling with the now empty roll of tape. The fruity fruit seller was completely covered in shiny silver tape; only his shoulders, head and feet were visible. His face was sweating; his hair clinging to his head. Gary felt a giggle rising and had to look away before he burst into hysterics.

'Sure, Petey, sure.' He hopped down from the counter where he had been perched and tossed the empty roll over his shoulder. It bounced off Owen and he whimpered a little in response to it. 'Just… maybe I'll have a little snack first. It's been a long time since I've had decent food you know.' He pulled open the refrigerator and peered inside. He grimaced and turned around to look at Owen. 'You call this food? It's like a frigging rabbit hutch in here.'

Owen spluttered something about trying to be healthy, but Gary wasn't interested in what he had to say.

'Well I guess we'll just have to hold on a little longer, Femme-Boy.' He sighed, slamming the refrigerator shut again. 'Once we're in our ninja suits we'll go get pizza.'

Petey shifted from foot to foot, glancing warily at the bound guy on the dining chair. Gary sighed heavily, knowing what he was thinking.

'I'll untie him before we go, don't worry.' He assured him, waving his hands. 'You can reassure your morals, Petey.' He glanced back to Owen and winked. 'Although that's if he plays nice.'

Owen just blinked. Gary chuckled and then grabbed Petey's arm. Still holding the huge kitchen knife (which felt nicely comfortable in his hand), he pulled the smaller boy to the door, still staring at their hostage.

'You be good, Owen. And keep in mind that I have really good hearing.'

Owen just whimpered again, looking like he was about to cry. Gary shook his head, wrapping his arm tighter around Petey's slim shoulders. Petey was rigid, moving stiffly. He knew the little twerp had his eyes fixed on the knife. He was probably having a panic, thinking that Gary might snap and stab him or something. Surely he would know that if Gary wanted him dead he would have done it while they were in the back of the fruit van.

'It makes me laugh,' Gary sniggered as he led the smaller boy towards the stairs. 'You see guys like Owen who are all muscular and healthy and won't even jack off in case they pull a muscle, and they're reduced to whimpering wrecks when two loonies like us hop out of the van with something sharp.'

'Well he probably doesn't want to be stabbed to death.' Petey frowned.

'No one wants to be stabbed to death, Petey.' Gary agreed. 'And he won't. Worst he'll get is a scratch. And that's only if he realizes that he could probably take the two of us and I have to assert my dominance or some nonsense like that.'

Petey wriggled against him, trying to break out from his hold. 'Let's just get this stuff and get out of here, Gary. We can go find Derby and try and figure out what happened…'

Gary just laughed. 'Calm down, Femme-Boy. Hold your unicorns. We'll get around to that.'

They reached the landing and Gary immediately turned left, wanting to look like he knew exactly where he was going but really having no clue. The trick was to make it look like you knew what you were doing. With enough confidence, you could fool any little twerp like Femme-Boy. Fortunately, the room on the left was the bedroom.

'Go on then, Petey. Go see if you can find yourself a nice new frock.'

Petey just frowned with that sulky, whiny little pout and approached the closet. He opened the doors, reached in blindly, and pulled out a pair of jeans and a white t-shirt with light blue stripes over the shoulders. 'These will do.' He said.

Gary snorted, moving to the closet. 'You really are dumb, aren't you.' He rummaged around until he found what he was looking for. He snatched the white t-shirt from Petey and gave him a dark grey hooded jumper instead. 'You think just because you're not in pissy scrubs that no one will recognise you?' He reached up to the top shelf and picked up a burgundy baseball cap. 'There. Now get them on.'

Petey opened his mouth to speak, but Gary held a finger up to silence him. Petey quickly closed his mouth, but it was probably because it was the hand that held the knife.

'No bitching,' Gary warned. 'Get them on, and then we'll go. Okay?' Petey nodded and went to leave the room. 'Jesus, man, I've seen you shower naked. Just get changed already.'

Gary ignored Petey's discomfort with that statement and went around looking for his own clothes. Owen was about the same size as Gary, but Petey would probably have to roll up his jeans and push up his sleeves. Too bad for him. Gary pulled out a black hooded jacket, a red t-shirt and a pair of dark khaki cargo pants. He changed quickly, not embarrassed by nakedness the way Petey was, and then balled his still damp scrubs and tucked them under his arm.

'Perfect fit.' Gary grinned, turning around to Petey.

Petey, however, wasn't as happy. The jeans were loose around his waist and he had to hold them up. His hands were lost beneath the sleeves of the sweater and the cap almost covered his eyes. Gary laughed at the sight of him.

'Looks like you're dressing up in daddy's clothes,' he chuckled. 'Makes a change from mom's clothes, huh?'

'Shut up, Gary.' Petey muttered. He stalked towards the closet and raked around for a belt. Gary reached above him and took a black baseball cap from the top shelf.

Then a sound made them both freeze.

It was the sound of the front door unlocking.

The two fugitives looked at each other, and for the first time Gary felt a pang of fear. His hand squeezed the knife tightly. Petey must have saw something in his eyes because he slowly shook his head.

'Hey, Owen!' a young female voice called. 'I hope you don't mind me just dropping in like this! You did give me a key so I figured that you wouldn't…'

'Dana!' Owen's voice bounced around the house, making Gary's ears ring. 'Get out of here! Run! Call the cops!'

Gary immediately pushed away from the closet and raced out of the bedroom door. Petey followed closely, muttering something under his breath. Gary ignored him and hurried down the stairs. He looked around to see a girl standing in the hallway, staring into the kitchen where her fuck-buddy was currently taped to a dining chair. She turned her head and looked up at Gary in bewilderment.

'Dana!' Owen yelled again, his voice accompanied by the scraping of his chair on the tiled kitchen floor. 'Run!'

Her pretty little mouth formed an o and she began to turn for the door, but her shock had paralysed her for a little too long. Gary put one strong hand on the banister and hopped over it, landing between her and the front door. She stopped and stared at him with impossibly huge eyes, her cheeks draining of colour.

'Just take a seat,' Gary told her, unaware that he was grinning. 'We'll be out of your hair in a minute. You can keep your boyfriend company while we take a little spending money.'

'Gary!' Petey cried, reaching the bottom of the stairs. 'Let's just go!'

Gary felt his lip curl up in irritation. 'For God's sake, Femme-Boy, grow some balls! You knew this was how it would be! Now stop being such a goddamn baby and start looking around for that money.'

'If you touch her I'll kill you, you bastards!' Owen bellowed from his useless spot in the kitchen.

Gary smiled thinly. 'Don't worry, I haven't had the chance to reflect on how long it's been since I saw a girl. At least not yet.' He grinned at the terrified girl and winked.

Considering that Gary had imagined he was ready for everything, he really should have seen the next chain of events coming. The girl looked over his shoulder in shock, causing him to whirl around. He was too slow though, and only caught a glimpse of Petey before he slammed a large white lamp down on his head. Gary stumbled and dropped to the floor, pieces of smashed china showering around him. The knife skittered from his grip across the smooth floor.

'Thanks for busting me out, Gary,' Petey said, his voice strained. 'But I'm not doing it like this.'

Gary looked up at the skinny moron, fury making him tremble. He felt warm blood on his head but he ignored it. He started to get up, but Petey had already turned and was sprinting out of the front door and away down the street. Gary staggered to his feet, turning an angry glare on the girl. She whimpered and high-tailed it into the kitchen.

With a low, furious growl, Gary ran out of the front door and into the street. He looked both ways, but Petey had vanished.