Nightmare Motel

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Chapter 5

Tobias' POV

My mind continues to race as Tris sleeps beside me with her head against my shoulder. It's been at least a half hour since we heard a bang. Nothing. Not even the sound of movement. I know this isn't over by a long shot. They won't just let us leave here. I stand, letting Tris lean against the wall. I need to see those tapes.

I silence the TV, not wanting to wake Tris and or alert anyone to what I'm doing. I begin to study tape after tape, looking for any mistakes. The only thing I notice is this room… Thinking that it would keep the guests safe from these assholes. But really that was their biggest mistake of all. Almost every time there is a man that appears when the situation gets boring and overkill begins to drag out, a man in a mask almost appears behind them out of nowhere with a knife. They always go for the man first, leaving the woman to scream and watch. Only they don't appear from nowhere but from the bathroom. I slowly walk towards the bathroom. Careful not to make a sound as I check and recheck all points where they might come in. The window is nailed shut and is way too small. I look into the shower noticing a vent that although is too small I decide to move the shower rod closer in case anyone tries to come in that way. They will be met by the rod, trapping them and signaling to us. But then my shoe trips over the bathroom rug and that's when it hits me. The rug.

I peel the rug bag and discover a trap door. Fuck, thats how they get in here. I wake up Tris, letting her know I found a way out of here. She's hesitant at first about climbing into a dark hole. But I don't care. We can't walk out the front door, this is the only way out.

We fall to our knees in the hole, staying down, we crawl through some kind of man-made tunnel. There are dim lights, giving us sight so we can see. Fuck, this is creepy and insane. No wonder they can move so quietly.

We get to a three way split pathway, we hear a faint movement out of the right path so we decide to go left, moving fast, but quietly as possible. We reach the end of the path, climbing up a ladder into what appears to be the garage that was next to the motel. Fuck, I hope they are not in it. I am the first one out, I turn quickly helping Tris out of the hole. We close the trap door, as quietly as we can. But I don't stop there. I signal towards a tool chest on wheels, Tris nods knowing exactly what I want to do. Quietly without a word, we both push the chest and lock the wheels in place on top of the trap door. For the first time in hours I take a deep breath, calming my nerves and so does Tris. For now they don't know where we are. For now, we are safe. I glance out of the windows, seeing not one, not two, but three masked men. They all seem frantic, obviously figuring out that we are not in the room after all. Tris stands next to me, squeezing my hand as we come up with our next move. We can't stay here forever. We need to keep moving, stay one step ahead of them. I see the side door that is close to the trees. I point that way, signaling Tris to be quiet as we make our way to the door. She nods her head, as we move slowly, I push the door hoping it wont send some kind of alarm to the three masked men. This is our way out.

Thankfully there isn't one sound that comes from the door other than its small squeaks in protest. I close the door behind us, careful not to let it slam. I signal to Tris with my finger towards the woods. Without another word we make a run for it. Just like before, I drag her by her hand, refusing to let her go. We won't die here. Not us. Not tonight. We don't stop when we are in the trees. We continue running, refusing to slow down our pace.

"Get em." I hear that son of a bitch, Peter scream out from behind us. My heart sinks, realizing that he is referring to Tris and I. I push a little faster, willing my feet to move like never before. But I also know that Tris can't keep this up for long. Her legs are shorter than mine, much shorter. And although she would never admit to it, I know it's a matter of time before her legs give out. My mind races against all the odds of us making it out of here alive. Just one car… Just one sign of another life… And we can get out of here. But I know that us seeing someone out here is very slim. Especially with God knows who is behind us now. My eyes land on a fallen tree, the trunk proving the perfect hiding place for at least one of us. Without giving us a second shot, I stop us both dead cold. I silence Tris with my finger against my lips, as I strain my ears to listen for anything or anyone coming close to us. I push Tris against the tree just in time to hear two sets of footsteps passing us. Hidden in the shadow of the tree, they don't see us.

"Did you see where they went?" One voice whispers.

"No. Keep looking." The other says. "Split up."

When the coast is clear, I push Tris' small figure towards the trunk of the tree, signaling her to crawl into the small hidden spot. She stops me, shaking her head. Stubborn as always… I know she won't leave me. But she has to hide. It's the only way I can keep her safe. I can fight, split them up and take them one by one. But only if I know she is out of harm's way.

"Please." I whisper into her ear. "I'll come back for you." I breathe in her deep scent, closing my eyes for just a second remembering the dozens of times that I have breathed her in. The countless times I always took for granted, thinking there would always be more. What if this is the last time?

"No. Not without you." She pleads with me. I see the glimmer of tears falling down her cheeks.

I haven't seen her cry since that one day. That terrible day.

"I'm so sorry… For everything. It was my fault," I finally say. After so long… After all this time, all the fighting. I finally say the one thing I couldn't bring myself to say. To admit that this was all my doing. I think for a moment how different our world would be if I had done so many things differently that day.

"Tobias, no." She says, her voice breaking.

"Shhh. I never stopped loving you… Or our baby. Please know that." I continued, "Tris I have to do this."

"I love you too." She says, tenderly. I lean in slowly, for a second savoring her lips against mine. I break apart, pushing her into the hole and before turning and silently running towards the way I heard the men going. Let's end this.

I run a few steps here and there, hiding behind a tree, making sure not to be spotted. It's not until I hear one of them moving, cracking twigs under his heavy feet before I ready myself. I step back, my back hitting the tree trunk waiting. Just like that it happens. He crosses my path, unknowing the danger he is in. I tackle him down, swinging fist after fist into his face, the side of his head, his chest… Anywhere. I don't stop until the blood is spilling from his lips.

"Tell me why." I burst out. Wanting to know why we had to go through this shit.

"Because it's fun." He says, smiling. "Don't worry, just for you we will make you watch as we cut her open first. Wishing that you would have let us end you long ago." He continues, "You're going to wish you died."

"I'm already there." I say, my hands surround his head, as I snap his neck right hearing the bones in his neck give way.

I stand breathlessly when his limp body falls to the ground. I'm careful, straining my ears to hear out for the other one. But I don't hear anything. My body is in shock, questioning everything. Suddenly I need Tris by my side, needing to know that she is okay seeing I don't know where the other son of a bitch is.

I rush back to the tree, breathing in relief when I see she is still there safe right where I left her. I take her hand, leading her quietly this time through the woods. We walk at a steady pace, careful where we step until we reach the main road. We stay hidden behind the trees, not knowing where Peter and the other idiot is… Not wanting to expose ourselves.

"Car." Tris calls out, she steps out of the trees not thinking. I reached out wanting to stop her. Not knowing who in the world is in that car. Thankfully, I breathe out when I see it's a highway patrol car. Luckily he sees us both, stopping the car letting us get in. He speeds off when I tell him "Go, someone is after us." Thankfully I don't see anyone around.

"This is it," I say, pointing towards the main office to the motel. My eyes crease together, confused. This place in the daytime looks abandoned. Like no one has been here for years.

"Are you sure?" Officer Max, asks us.

"This is it." Tris confirms it.

We all step out of the car, turning to see not one but three other cop cars come in behind us. We agreed we would help them find the motel. Swearing that we wouldn't let anyone go through what we did, and so many others before us.

But by the look of this place, it appears that no one has been here in years. Tris cups her hands over her eyes to look into one of the windows. Nothing but cobwebs and layers and layers of dust.

"You know we really don't appreciate the run around out here. Not on the taxpayers dime." Officer Max says, I can hear the annoyance in his voice. He is obviously beginning to question our credibility.

"You don't understand…They were here." Tris says, she rushes to the door where our room was, turning the knob, she walks in. The room looks just like it did last night, only dirty and dusty.

"Is this some kind of joke?" One of the other officers says. "Hey, didn't you say you drive a Honda Pilot?" We both turn to see in fact our car parked out in the middle of the parking lot. What the? I walk slowly towards the car, finding it unlocked and the keys inside. The car turns on just fine.

"I think we best be going." The other cop says, walking back to his car.

"Drive safe you too. And please don't come back here anytime soon." Officer Max says, walking back to his car. Tris and I stand there questioning everything around us. My eye catches something inside the car, I reach in and pull out a piece of white folded paper.

"You win, this time."

"I'll be seeing you both soon."

A/N

So thoughts, concerns…Oh shit moments.

Another story now bites the dust.

Next week we will return to A Second chance at love.

Please keep a lookout for the Thanksgiving one-shot… This year as requested we will be adding to our previous year's story…. Thanksgiving with my EX. It will be posted on Thanksgiving day.

special thanks to my girl FDFobsessed who is always pushing me for better with these stories and always such a wonderful friend to me. Love ya girlie

Revised by: FDFobsessed

Please have a safe and Happy Halloween everyone, happy reading, be safe and stay healthy.

Trini