The Runner ➳ Narry (Book One)

Chapter Thirty-Five

(Niall's POV)

It was dark in the closet, the only sound present was my heavy breathing. I hadn't even thought about where Harry might have been hiding, and now I felt a little guilty. I should've let him take the closet, or made sure he'd get into a hiding place before I myself hid. He was the one that was being hunted, so why did Louis and I get to hide first?

I couldn't hear him. I had no idea where he might have gone. I just prayed that he didn't get caught.

My legs were cramping from being scrunched up against me. My chest was cramping from lack of air I could inhale from my legs blocking the expansion of my body as I breathed. I was still confused about all of tonight's events, how Zayn knew Harry and Louis. Zayn never told me much about his life besides the fact that he worked for a rich man with a very successful business. That's all I knew. I couldn't figure out how Harry and Louis could be connected to him.

I also couldn't figure out what would make Jeff hunt down Harry. From what he told me, the only thing that happened was an argument. How did Harry even know Jeff? What were they arguing about?

Just then, the closet door opened. My breath caught in my throat, I felt like passing out. I pushed myself harder against the far wall, praying that I couldn't be seen in this light. I tucked my hands under my thighs and held my breath. Peeking up, I saw a thin, fragile looking man with a sneering face, poking his head into the closet. I squeezed my eyes shut, my face heating up from lack of oxygen. I couldn't hold my breath much longer.

The scruffy man looked up and down, peering into the opposite corner before looking my way.

Shit.

He almost seemed like a dog, sniffing the air and squinting his eyes into the darkness. I really hoped my cologne from yesterday faded out already.

He backed away, his head disappearing from sight. The closet door closed, footsteps retreating out of the room.

He didn't see me.

A long awaited sigh escaped my mouth, and I immediately spread my sore legs out in front of me. I closed my eyes and took a couple deep breaths of relief, before sitting up and opening the door quietly.

I poked my head out, colder air rushing into my lungs. I crawled half-way out of the closet and laid on my stomach, pressing my ear to the carpeted floor. I knew this room was right above the front entrance. I waited, listening.

"All clear, boss. No sign of Styles or Tomlinson."

Another breath of relief escaped through my mouth. They hadn't found Harry. That meant he was somewhere upstairs, hiding. I looked around the room, the whole thing was bare except for a large chest that was pressed up against the far wall. I narrowed my eyebrows at it, not exactly sure where it even came from.

I stood up from the ground and walked over to the chest. It looked about right for someone Harry's size to fit in. I wonder why the man didn't check in here.

I unlatched the chest and opened the lid slowly, praying I'd see Harry curled up safely in there.

But it was empty.

Okay, now I was confused. There was no place else to go besides the bathroom, which didn't have a hiding place. The bathtub would have been to obvious, and Harry wasn't dumb enough to hide there anyways.

I poked my head into the hallway to make sure it was clear before quickly running across the hall into the bathroom. The cabinet doors beneath the sink were still closed, so that signalled Louis wasn't out yet. I stepped forward and bent down, knocking softly on the painted wood.