Seventh of March: Midnight

Steven was lying on top of his bed with one hand resting on his bare stomach, and the other twiddling with the silver locket that hung around his neck, close to his heart.

There was a buzz.

Then another.

It could only mean one thing, and he scrambled to his bag on the floor. He tossed out everything in the way, which made even more of a mess, until he had access to the inside pocket. It was unzipped like his life depended on it, and the screen of his burner revealed two messages from an unknown contact, the first giving an address like usual, but the second...

He never received two messages together.

Last move. You're on your own.

Steven went cold.

He had just been bailed on with no explanation, no warning, and by one of the few people he trusted.

It was anger he felt- betrayal- but he reigned it in for now, and Steven grabbed the pen that was also in the inside pocket to scribble down the address on his left forearm. He then slid the back off the burner, fished out the sim, broke it between his teeth and threw it into the bag along with the dead phone because they were no longer of use.

Step one was about the only thing he could settle on, and that was to get the hell out of this place tonight because the clean up crew would be there within the hour to carry out the classic arson cover-up.

Steven threw open bedroom doors, because knocking wasn't his thing, and told the guys to pack up their stuff before he rushed back to find something suitable to cover up his bare chest, and hastily lace up his boots.

Clothes were folded messily, drawers were emptied, and everything was packed up into kit bags or rucksacks. The house was well and truly alive and against the clock, but the boys were efficient having done this multiple times.

Steven was the first to bundle down the stairs with his stuff and he grabbed the car keys off the side and loaded up the back of the van. Joe came down next, with the others following close behind.

He hadn't forgotten about the girl. He might not have mentioned her, but he had been thinking about her. In fact, he was thinking about her at this very moment.

Sitting in the driver's seat with the door open, Steven had one knee up and was swinging the keys around his index finger, clasping them in his palm every so often. The devil chatted away on his shoulder, questioning this, questioning that, guilt tripping him into this, offering him impossible alternatives, but her...he just couldn't see a way to salvage what he had done.

Footsteps approaching, Steven caught the keys one final time, reached over the passenger side and popped open the glovebox. He grabbed something from its dark contents, and leaned out to snap his fingers at Joey and Tom, having done their final sweep

"Go get her," he ordered, and threw a bundled piece of fabric at them.

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Rushed movement somewhere above her, and the tumble of multiple footsteps down the stairs, had successfully got Leah's attention.

She had sat up in the dark, pulling her jacket tightly over her shoulders, and something told her it was better to be prepared.

She was right, and she wasn't alone for much longer.

It was hard to tell, but Leah was certain out of the two that rushed in, the one on the left was the tall blonde, but the man on the right remained a mystery. He was shorter in height, but clearly had a muscular build, and he wasn't the kind of guy that she wanted to be on the receiving end of his punch.

The air had already caught in her throat, countering her initial alertness, and a hand reached for her forearm and pulled to her feet with ease. It just so happened to be the same man who had untied her earlier that was now holding both her wrists together so he could loop rope around them.

Once finished, he switched places with his partner and it looked like there was something in his hand too.

"Hey, what're you-"

Darkness.

The shorter man tied a blindfold in place just under her wound, which wasn't a pleasant experience.

Leah winced, unable to turn her head frantically to her left and right where both her arms were being held, because just standing was giving her grief. A nudge to get her feet to move, and she was relying on the support of the guys on either side of her since she couldn't see, to prevent her bumping into anything.

"Where are we going?" she asked, trying to sound as brave as possible. "What's happening?"

There was a pause so a door could be closed. From the drop in temperature, and the hard ground under her socks, Leah could tell she was outside, and staying calm was out of the question.

"If it helps, we don't know where we're going either," the one on her left spoke close to her ear.

His voice was new, a similar American accent, and what he said just terrified her even more.

Leah's shin clattered into something hard, a sting enough to make her grimace and bite her tongue, but she was lifted up before she could dwell on it.

It was an awkward fall into her new environment, and when she kicked out her feet, they hit something soft. She nudged her foot a couple of times, heard something resembling a zip clattering to imply it must've been a bag, and one of the men clambering in behind her and pulling a door across its grooves, thwarted her panicked breathing.

Leah was in a vehicle, confirmed by the start up of an engine, and with a blindfold on her face and her wrists bound, she could do next to nothing when it lurched forward.

<>

Ordinarily, Tom was the designated driver, but when they were moving, Steven always took the wheel.

There was a fresh smoke between his teeth as he waited for Tom to climb in beside Brad to complete the front row. It left Joe and Joey in the back with their unplanned company, but they wouldn't be bothered.

Steven looked over briefly, receiving the 'all-clear' nod, and started up the engine. The address was already punched into the satnav on the dash, and he stepped on the gas, leaving yet another place behind with a new one in sight, of which might be their last.

The ominous message begged more unanswered questions which ultimately hinted that Steven's reckless journey was coming to an unfortunate, and unforgivable end. With all these negative thoughts, he ended up throwing his cigarette away out of frustration before it was finished, and as the satnav indicated they had at least another two hours to go, he had nothing left to simmer his stress levels.

Steven slouched into his seat in an effort to get more comfortable, and had no choice but to brace himself for the monotonous drive ahead with no one but himself as company. He took one hand from the wheel to fluff up his hair away from his eyes, an exasperated action that mirrored how deep in thought he was.

Thinking was something he did daily, things that were dark and depressing in his current state, and a lot of the time he said exactly what was on his mind and didn't care who it offended. It had got him into trouble on countless occasions, but it had also given him the thrills in life to be that guy who didn't put up with bullshit and stood up for what he believed in.

Steven was, by nature, an incredibly outgoing guy, with an extravagant personality that was infectious to those around him. He was talented, passionate, and loving to everyone he met but particularly those he cared about the most and he could count those people on two hands.

It was a shame that Steven Tyler was a thing of the past. That he used to be all those things. That he used to be that guy. He used to be happy.

Then came the biggest mistake of his life, a long time coming with an honest reflection, just when it was borderline perfect, and he lost everything. And now, months on, he'd possibly just made his second biggest mistake whilst trying to find something he had lost- someone he would never give up on.

Gripping the wheel tighter, Steven physically shook his head so he didn't have to be reminded of the pain. It never worked, tears threatened in his eyes, but it was always something for a second, and something was always better than nothing.

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