Two and Three

If Only...

His phone fell to the floor in a loud clatter as Tony found himself face to face with a tall figure in a dark hoodie with an even darker mask. For a brief moment the grounded light washed Abbie's face, illuminating a troubled expression that could have passed for sleeping if she were not so pale.

He would have liked to say he flung some witty one liners at the masked man, screamed: the Hell are you doing man? And What did she ever do to you? Or If you wanted food, you could have just asked.

But for the first time in a long time, his tongue held itself. Maybe it was better that way, who knows how the guy would have reacted of he had been able make sounds any more coherent than that of a duck choking on a marble.

Not five seconds after the phone hit the floor, did the light sputter weakly before fading into darkness. After that the only light left to see by was the distant strobes of the street lamps glimmering in through the back door. Tony considered running. He could take the darkness for cover and disappear into the night (and to the police station) before the man could take him too. Abbie needed help and God only, knew where the others were.

That plan took him about two twenty feet -- each step a further product of blanched adrenaline. Several pots fell from their hooks as he straight into a counter, the momentum almost enough to take him off his feet.

His teeth sank down on his lips as his ribs got personally introduced to the sharp corner of a cooking counter top. It was too dark to flat out run; with all the tables and sharp objects around he would be lucky if he didn't impale himself. He was forced to take it slow until he could find the door out of the kitchen. If he could just make it out of the kitchen.

Click.

Tony froze at the distinctive sound.

"Turn around," growled a rough, unnatural voice that had Tony's blood running cold. A thousand descriptions flew through his mind. Cold. Icy. Evil. Not human. "Turn around and stay where you are, or I'll shoot her right here and now."

Tony turned slowly and raised his hands above his head. His eyes flickered to a knife set sitting on the counter, just a few feet away. He couldn't make much more than it's silhouette it the virtually nonexistent light, but what else could it be? It was a kitchen after all. If he could only distract the guy long enough to get just a little closer....

It was almost like the guy could read his mind. "Don't even think about trying anything," the scrambled voice threatened. "Do exactly what I say, or I'll shoot her."

"Where are the others?" He squeaked and edged closer to counter. So....close....

"Did I say you could speak?"

Tony swallowed back a gulp of air and shook his head weakly. He couldn't distract him, not without his voice.

"Now you're going to do exactly as I say, do you understand, kid?"

He nodded and shifted he eyes towards the counter where the knives were. If only...

"And if I even think that you're thinking of trying anything," the voice continued, pulling Tony's attention away from the knives. He couldn't really see in the dark, but from the click earlier and the way the man's arm was pointed at the floor, he knew he had a gun. "This poor girl's gonna die. And it'll be allll yooour fault."

"Is this some kinda of sick game to you?" Tony spat.

The voice chuckled hoarsely against the dark. "I didn't say you could talk, did I? Now," the man knelt down and there was a distinct whine of plastic as he unzipped something and threw a rope at the student's feet. "Tie her up."

"What? No! I can't do that!" Tony exclaimed. "She's already out, why do you need to tie her up!?"

"You can and you will," the man replied in his garbled voice....it almost sounded like it was going through a voice changer. "Or I'll shoot her."

"You're not going to shoot," he snapped, finding his guts. "If you were going to shoot anyone, you would have done it by now."

Suddenly there was a simultaneous flash of light and an ear shattering bang, that left the student's senses spinning from the abrupt overexposure.

It took several long moments to collect himself enough to even assess what had just happened. Suddenly every plan of action he had devised in the short amount of time took a dive off a cliff as his mind finally pieced together what had just happened.

Bright flash.

Loud bang.

Gunshot.

Tony couldn't stop the bile from rising in his throat as he heard a soft whimper come up off the floor. "Abbie?" He croaked and ignored the guy's warning as he ran across the kitchen and fell to his knees by her side. "Abs, can you here me?"

"D-did we win?" She murmured faintly. "I dropped my rifle at the end, but the judges didn't see it, right?"

"Now, see what you made me do," the man chuckled behind the mask. "And it's all your fault, Tony."

He didn't even stop to think how the guy with the gun had come across his name. "Abbie, Abbie," Tony said as he grabbed her face between his hands and forced her to look at him....not that he could see her any better. "Talk to me, girl, are you okay? Did. He. Shoot. You?"

"It hurts," the guard girl moaned in response.

Of all times for her to be completely and utterly cryptic...

"What Abbie," he stressed as he resisted the urge to shake the answer out of her. It probably wasn't the best idea, but no one ever said that ideas under pressure were his strong suit. "What hurts? What hurts."

"Holy shít," Abbie gasped and cringed forward. "I-I'm, this, this is, it's blood isn't it? I'm bleeding."

"Stay calm, calm," Tony warned, but couldn't stop his own panic from building as he felt a hot liquid seep through the knees of his jeans. "You sick bastard!" He yelled back at the man, who had moved behind him. "She needs help -- well she always needed help -- but she's hurt. She needs a hospital."

"No kid," the man replied. Tony jumped as he felt the rope the man had thrown at him earlier, hit the back of his head. "You need to tie the her up, and do as I say, or," for a moment, Tony's heart dropped as he felt the cold muzzle of the gun press against the back of his neck. "Or you'll die too."

[Edited]