Impulse

Chapter 45

*NARRATOR'S POV*

Three people together in one isolated room, yet their combined energy is lower than that of a single person. Three times have they been scared by the blowing out of their only light source and each time they were left with with minute teeth of rats gnawing at their clothing.

It felt them in anticipation of how much worse it could get. Louis ran out of a voice to scream with and only managed closed his eyes just as the room when black and he could cry through another subtle attack. Each time they didn't know whether or not anything was really going to happen, just that something was.

"I'm...-" Zayn had his head hanging low back between his shoulderblades. "I can't."

"You're fine." Liam assured him, not wanting anyone to give up at all even if it's been so many hours of being locked up here with nothing but fear to look forward to.

Louis could see his body shaking, vibrating with whatever mild energy source was killing itself out. His hair was matted and greasy on either side of his face, hanging like a limp curtain. "I'm not."

"Louis." Liam swallowed the wet clumps of something awful tasting in his mouth. "Louis, co-come on."

"Liam, there's no way we're getting out of here." Zayn sighs in exasperation at Liam's tactics. "Just leave him to wallow."

"We're getting out, Zayn." Liam snaps at the other man. "There was.....-"

No matter how softly he try to say it, both pairs of other listening ears heard clearly what he was going to say. Zayn turns his head in Liam's direction. "What? There was what, Liam?"

"A tracker in my phone." Liam stares up at the looming abyss above their heads.

That tiny spark of hope is extinguished by Zayn's comment. "You're on leave, Liam."

"Exactly." Liam's neck arteries strain to be visible from under his skin. "That's why I didn't want to say anything."

If Liam's on leave when nobody will care to track him from being stationary in one spot for so long. He also doesn't have his phone anymore because his pockets were lighter, empty. Wherever it was, it had to be broken.

"Ugh- fuck, Liam." Zayn curses in frustration. "So now what do we try to do?"

"Lou? You still there?" Liam asks without opening his eyes, the absolute silence eating away at his patience. He knows Louis is most vulnerable in this case and he needs to keep checking up on him.

"Yeah." Louis keeps staring straight ahead.

Nothing on either side has changed except the rats moving about in the perimeter around them can be heard, notorious little rodents. His throat is closed up and sore, no resources left to utilise in re-energising himself.

"What are you thinking?" Liam doesn't recognise the tone of voice Louis is using though it was a contemplative one.

Louis looks at him with a hint of something excitable. "I know where we are!"

"Well how the fuck do you know that?" Zayn groans irritably from the other side and Louis would glare at him if he could but this new information is too fulfilling to his senses.

"Listen to that." Louis makes everything go quiet and for the faint clink-clank sound in the background to become more prominent. "Do you hear it?"

"Yeah." Liam winces from the blow of a migraine. "It sounds like metal. Really loud metal."

"Keys." Zayn contributes after having listened for longer. He's just as desperate to be free as they are.

"Keys, yes." Louis, for the first time since he met the twins' mother, beams in the darkness that overpowers him. "After having worked in this place for a year, I know that those keys are for the East wing."

"We're back in the Madhouse, aren't we?" Liam sounds more afraid than he should be. The Madhouse is not somewhere to return to.

"How do you know?" Zayn will not go out on a limb here with this boy's hunches. He wants definitive proof.

Louis chews his bloody and dried lip, blinking with one swollen eyelid. "Those keys have a steel chain holding it together. It makes that exact noise everytime someone uses it."

"Louis." Liam says cautiously, his voice drained and tired. "How sure are you?"

"Completely." Louis feels fired up on the dregs of adrenaline his body has stocked.

"I don't know why we're here but the same guy put us all in here." Zayn says again to the others.

"Dexter lives in the Madhouse." Liam has to look between Louis and Zayn when saying something, the duct tape restricting the expansion of his chest as his breathing rate accelerates. "Why wouldn't he bring us here? He has nowhere else to go."

"Shh." Louis quickly hisses, hearing those footsteps before them both.

Thankfully, Liam and Zayn aren't idiotic youngsters who love getting deeper into trouble. They understand why Louis did that and sealed their mouths to listen for the intrusive sound as well. It gets louder and heavier then a deafening bang that makes the pigeons in the roof fly off. Louis holds his breath and his nails gyrate against the wood of his seat, his head turned away from the possible entrance as he cringed ahead of Dexter's appearance.

But then there were more footsteps, just one more person and everyone became confused. The anxiety of their worry didn't wear off though and all three occupants of the room looked anywhere but at where the footsteps were getting closer.

One. Two.

The first person stopped as it was extremely close to the edge of the dark cloud. The second continued until at that region.

Three. Four.

"Petal."