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A Runaway Family

Chapter 16

Fear is more powerful than pain

Tobias' POV

I don't know what has gotten into me today, but all day long I have had the strangest feeling that something terrible is going to happen just around the corner. Images of the nightmare that I had before we left home about my family being murdered kept on creeping its way back into my mind. No matter what I did, it just kept coming back. I couldn't help but cherish every second of today with my family at Dinosaur World. The way they smiled and laughed, and of course the way their eyes lit up when they saw something that excited them.

I know I worried Tris this evening with all of that serious talk. I just couldn't help but talk about my feelings tonight, but I just needed to say them out loud. Tris and the kids are my whole world. I can't lose them. My right arm that is wrapped around Tris tightens, holding her closer to my side. I lift my head just enough to kiss the top of her head gently, in hopes not to wake her. I lay my head back on my pillow, allowing my mind to continue to think about today...

Flashback

"Ooh this place looks really scary," Uriah says in a playful tone, as we walk through the carnivore section of the park. He lifts his knees up, as if to appear that he is trying to tip toe and be quiet. Maddy laughs at her Uncle Uri who is walking silly, while Ethan laughs telling his Uncle that they are fake. I feel a tap on my shoulder, obviously someone wants my attention. I turn around as Zeke places his index finger against his lips indicating to me to be quiet as he winks at me. I smirk, wondering what he is up to as he disappears within the trees near us. I place one hand on Shauna's wheelchair, as my other hand remains on Tris'. I attempt to push them both down the path. Here we go. Shauna looks at me puzzled with what her husband is up to, while Tris shakes her head from side to side.

Uriah has no clue that anything is being planned behind his back as he continues to tip toe terribly down the path. Marlene is pushing an empty stroller as Maddy is holding her Uncle's hand, along with Ethan. I glance down at Tris who has her hand covering her mouth, laughing hysterically. Something on my left catches my eye, as I turn to look through the trees. I know it can't be Zeke as he just slipped back through the trees on our right. When I suddenly hear the loudest, the most squealing scream I have ever heard in my life… I turn my head fast, giving myself whiplash, while I'm at it. My heart is beating fast and I'm out of breath. What the hell?

I can't describe the wave of relief that I feel the moment I see Uriah jumping up and down with his hands in the air, screaming like a girl. Everyone laughs hard, almost doubling over. Poor Tris is holding on for dear life to her baby bump as she laughs harder than ever. I look down towards the object that apparently has scared Uriah nearly to death, but all I'm seeing is a large rubber snake on the ground near his feet. Zeke is on his knees, with his hands on the ground laughing his ass off as Uriah has yet to calm down. Idiot.

Flashback ends

The blaring of the alarm jolts me from my bed. I stand up motionless and out of breath in the middle of our bedroom. My eyes land on Tris, who is having trouble trying to get out of the bed in her very pregnant condition. All my senses kick in, trying to hear what is going on beyond our door, I even smell the air just in case.

"What is that?" Tris asks, as she slips on her shoes. Luckily we have gotten used to sleeping in clothing ever since we have been on the run. Nothing special, Tris normally sleeps in shorts or leggings and a large shirt. I on the other hand have gotten accustomed to sleeping in sweats and a tank top. Again nothing special. It's something that we both were never in the habit of doing back home, as we preferred to sleep naked. Last night after we finished making love for the third time, Tris and I cleaned ourselves up in the shower and then dressed for bed.

It's odd being on the run, you are always prepared to leave at any moment. Sure we have gotten comfortable here, but that doesn't mean we stopped being prepared for the worst. We always leave our shoes by our bedroom door, we have extra money on us at all times and the van is always gassed up with extra clothes and back up non perishable food, just in case.

"That's the alarm!" I say, nearly yelling at the top of my lungs. Damn that's annoyingly loud. I wonder why the kids are not yelling and coming through our bedroom door, frightened by the noise.

I grab my gun that I keep hidden in the nightstand. I tuck it in the hem of my sweatpants behind me, I grab Tris' hand, giving it a reassuring squeeze before towing her behind me. I make sure my body is blocking her as I slowly open the door to the hallway.

I feel every ounce of the blood in my body boil as my adrenaline kicks in, as we prepare to leave our room. I can't help but think the worst, thinking that somehow I won't be able to pull my family out from the danger tonight. Tris and the kids are everything to me, all four of them.

As I peek my head out, I catch the smallest sight of Zeke's head peeking out of his room. He glances my way, he looks confused with alarm written all over his face. His eyes are wide, as he searches with his eyes up and down the hallway. I nod, knowing exactly what he is saying. He opens the door just enough to let his body slide through as do I, leaving our pregnant wives at the doors of our rooms. We both hold our guns up and ready as he goes down the hall one way and I go down the other way, clearing the hall. I made it to the kid's room first. I glance around in the hallway before attempting to open the door. I slowly open the door, not knowing what I will find inside. I know their room is way too quiet, especially during this chaos. I take a deep breath as I look inside, finding their room empty. I feel my stomach drop at the eeriness of the room. Ethan's bed is unmade and his shoes are gone. I glance at Maddy's toddler bed that is also empty and unmade. "Fuck!" I spit out. Where are they? Did someone take them? Is that what this is about? Is it Eric or Marcus? Or both?

I close the door behind me checking the other bedroom that is usually empty. There's nothing. No Ethan, no Maddy, nothing out of place. Where the fuck are they?

I turn back around, heading back down the hallway, meeting Zeke halfway. I point my gun down to the floor as he approaches, he does the same. I see Uriah in tow, with his gun in his hands ready to shoot at any moment. He continues to look everywhere, like he is searching for someone or something.

"Someone's in the house," Uriah whispers, confirming one of my worst fears. My hold on my gun tightens. Son of a bitch! "Marlene has locked herself up in our room, trying to find them on the camera feed. Whoever it is, they are smart. They keep dodging the cameras," he explains, showing me his walkie talkie. Marlene must have the other receiver.

"The kids are gone. I… They aren't in their room," I say, I can feel my fear threatening to boil out of me. I struggle to keep myself calm, knowing that if I lose control it won't help anything. It won't help them.

"Their what?" Tris screams from behind Zeke and Uriah. It's then that I notice that the girls didn't wait where they were told to after all. Of course, why would I think that they would stay and do what they were told.

"Tris," I say, pushing through the guys to get to her. I place my right hand on her stomach, while keeping a tight hold on my gun in my left hand . "You need to stay calm, Love, for the baby," I say in the calmest tone I can muster. She nods, rubbing her stomach as she takes a deep breath. This damn blaring alarm really needs to stop. God damn it.

"Tris, they are probably hiding in their secret place... Remember we prepared Ethan for this. He is a smart boy, they will be alright," Uriah says. I'm not sure if he believes his own words, or if he is just trying to keep Tris calm so she doesn't go into labor right here, right now. In the middle of all this chaos, Tris going into labor is the last thing we need. We are all startled when we hear a loud crash coming from downstairs. Zeke quickly moves to get to his wife, protecting her with his body, as I do the same with Tris. Uriah moves, ready to shoot first and ask questions later.

"Shit they found us," Zeke comments.

"You and Shauna need to get out of here. Now! Take the van, go into town…" I begin to demand.

"No. No Tobias, I'm not leaving you and I'm sure as hell not leaving my kids," Tris says, stubbornly. God damn it.

"Tris, you need to keep yourself and our unborn son safe. I can't protect you and myself…"

"I'M NOT LEAVING! Uriah give me something." Tris says, turning towards Uriah and holding her hand out to him. He glances between me and her, wondering whose side to go with.

"Fucking shit," Uriah curses under his breath, as he digs behind the hem of his pants, pulling out one of the throwing knives we used to practice with. "Try to stay behind us," he whispers. Fucking, Uriah.

"Let's do this. I got your back," Zeke says, holding his gun a little higher and stepping forward.

"You sure you got bullets in that thing?" Uriah asks. Probably trying to break the tension.

"No," I say, matching his sarcastic tone. "I figured I would shoot the bullets out of my nostrils, so I left them upstairs."

"Ha Ha. Very funny jackass," Uriah says, as we slowly descend down the stairs. Uriah takes the lead down, as I am second. I feel Tris' hands grabbing the back of my tank top, with every step down she grips it tighter. Shauna is behind Tris, while Zeke brings up the rear of the train.

"Ethan," Tris calls out once we reach the first floor. I shush her, not wanting to give our location away to our unwanted guests. We continue to hear crashing at one end of the house while there seems to be a loud banging noise on the other side. There's no doubt in my mind that there are at least two of them here… Which means Marcus and Eric must be here for the unplanned party they arrived for.

"Uriah!" Marlene's voice comes through the receiver at the same time we hear, "There you are." I hear from my right, I don't think about my next move as I hear the click of a gun.

"Tris!" I scream out, as I throw my body on top of Tris, protecting the woman that I love and our unborn son from the gunshots. I hear the gun go off and chaos erupts as Shauna and Tris both yell out.

A/N

Finally the moment we have all been waiting for... The showdown. Who will survive?

Comment below and let me know your thoughts.

See you next week to find out.

Revised by: FDFobsessed

Like always Happy Reading and of course stay safe and healthy,

Trini