<Skyler's POV>

I can't even tell where the groans are coming from anymore. The pain coursing through the three of our bodies is unbearable and is causing involuntary sounds to escape our throat. Sometimes a harsh gasp or the sound of blood rising in our throats causing us to choke. I think back to when Pony was reading to us one day. The book was, Gone With The Wind, and I remember a particular scene that was awfully brutal. At the time, I hadn't really thought about how much the characters must have been hurting, with the flies swarming their bodies. But now I knew, now I've experienced death grasping at my throat and tearing out my chest. Pounding on the back of my skull as if death was knocking at my front door.

My short black hair is stained a deep red, the viscous liquid sticking small chunks of hair together. The blood sticks to my clothes. A cocktail of my own blood and Chris's from when she leaned against me for support when we were so close to escaping this hell hole. The look that was in her eyes is seared onto the inside of my eyelids. Her usual bright eyes, fogged with fear from the past repeating itself. The lips on her face that were usually turned into a smile, are cut up and glued into a frown. Her pale skin took a bath in its own blood, every inch of it coated in crimson.

And not to mention Steve. He thought he had saved us. He thought he was going to get us out alive. Only to figure out that Charlie was awaiting his arrival, ready to seriously injure and even kill him if necessary. It leaves me to ask the question, is this all one sick game to him? Does our torture add up to his pleasure or happiness.

Dallas comes into mind. His tough facade hidden behind his chocolate brown eyes. The brown hair that is constantly slicked back with grease or lazily tossed across his forehead. How I long to be in his arms. The desire inside of me to be with my life partner and children is stronger than ever. Those kids need me. Dallas needs me. For once in my life I actually feel needed. For the longest time after my parents died, I felt unwanted. I felt as if I died, no one would miss me and nothing in the world would change. Now here I am, with a family that needs me, and I can't reach them.

Charlie, for the most part, had left us alone since he strung up Steve on the shelf next to me. The three of us hang there like the meat of a pig in a freezer. Raw, waiting to be salted and cut into pieces. A part of me hopes Dallas comes to save me. The other part of me hopes he stays away. I don't want him dying too. Then my children would be orphans. They don't deserve that.

A mumble comes from my right. It's Chris, trying to speak through the pain. "Sky?" She manages to spit out in a hoarse voice. I look at her dismally, knowing the end is near.

"Ya Christina?" I reply in a slight whisper, unable to speak about lifer than that.

"If I don't make it and you do-"

"Chris don't say that, we're getting out of here," I reassure her even though I'm not sure myself.

"Just let me say my peace, please," Chris pleads. I nod slowly, my head pounding with the small movement. "If I don't make it and you do, take care of the kids and Soda, especially Soda. Don't let him go down the drain. He never showed it, but the war really killed him, his spirit already has a crack in it, don't let his spirit shatter," Chris begs, blood curdling her words. I nod my head yet again even though it worsens my headache.

"I will, I promise," I confirm, "do the same for me will you? Keep your brother happy, don't let him mourn too long," I demand kindly. Chris smiles to show her response. I smirk back weakly. On the other side of me, Steve coughs.

"You two talking about death," he snorts, aggravated with our tones, "we are all getting out of here, don't start making your damn death wishes on me. I intend to live a painfully long life."

Charlie barges into the basement again. He glances at the mouth restraints that we removed with our jaws. He shakes his head annoyed. Pulling duct tape off of the workshop desk, he rips off three pieces and tapes our mouths shut. "Dallas will find us soon enough, and when he does remember we must be-" a loud banging comes at the basement door that leads outside. A sneer plays on Charlie's lips. He then puckers his lips and places a finger to them before hiding behind the shelf Steve, Chris, and I are bound to.

"Chrissy? Skyler Elizabeth?" Dallas yells through the door. I hear a round being put in the chamber of Charlie's gun. Chris breathes heavily as she feels the barrel being placed through the shelf into the back of her skull.

"Scream," Charlie demands in a bone chilling whisper, "or I shoot her." Regretfully, I scream through the duct tape, making a dull noise, but Dallas must hear it.

"Skyler? Skyler!" Dallas yells. My life partner throws his weight against the door over and over, trying to get to us. I pray he can't make it in. Give up Dallas! If you come in here we all die! To my despair, Dallas makes it through the door. He looks at the three of us with hopeful eyes. When he begins to walk near us I try to scream through the tape, telling him to run. He looks at me confused. I try to point to where Charlie is hiding behind us, but my hands at tightly bound. My face turns red and I use all my energy to tell Dallas to save himself. Dally turns around just in time to stop Charlie from hitting him over the back of the head. Dallas catches Charlie's wrist in his hand. With his other hand clenched, Charlie punches Dallas in the jaw. I pull at my restraints desperately. Chris tries to scream through the tape on her mouth. Tears spring from her eyes worriedly.

Dallas falls back into the tool desk. Looking behind him, Dallas finds a wrench and grabs if swiftly, swinging it forward just missing Charlie's eye. Charlie grabs the collar of Dallas' black shirt and throws him into the ground. Dallas grunts and tries to fight back as Charlie begins to lash out on his face. Charlie's fist crashes into Dallas' face only three times before Dallas finally managed to swing the wrench up and hit him in the side. Seeing his chance, Dallas flips himself on top of his father. He holds the wrench to his father's throat, pushing the tool down into his throat until Charlie's face is a deep red. Charlie kicks his knee up into Dallas' gut. Dallas falls off of Charlie and his father escapes. The old abusive man walks quickly to Chris, Steve, and I, ripping off the tape from our mouths and points a gun to Chris' head. I take a deep breath, finally able to breathe through my mouth again. Dallas stands up again and looks up at Chris fearfully. His eyes are wide, full of worry for his little sister. Chris bites her tongue and takes a sharp breath in. I struggle to escape my bonds. "Don't make another move or I blow her skull open!" Charlie screams violently, spit flying from his mouth. Dallas drops the wrench with a loud clash before putting up his hands in surrender.

"Don't hurt her, please don't hurt her," Dallas begs weakly. Charlie smiles a sick smirk that makes me ill.

"I'm hurting her either way, do you want me to wait or do it now?" Charlie asks, knowing he is ripping out Dallas' heart.

"You sick fucking prick!" Steve hisses before spitting at Charlie. Without a moment of hesitation, Charlie points the gun at Steve's gut and shoots. I flinch, my eyes wide in fear, as a scream leaves my throat. Chris shrieks as she watches her best friend begin to bleed and go a bit limp. Dallas takes a step forward and Charlie must see because he turns the gun towards my skull. I look at Charlie with eyes as hard as stones, trying to not look horrified.

"Go to the tool desk," Charlie demands. Dallas listens and kneels by the desk. Charlie walks over to Dallas and ties his hands to the desk. Once finished, Charlie reaches into the desk and puts a few more rounds into his gun casually, as if nothing just happened. He looks at the four of us with that same sneer as before. "I'm going to go get everything ready for you Dallas, don't fuck everything up while I'm gone," Charlie says before leaving the four of us alone once again. Chris look over me to Steve.

"Steve?" She whispers weakly. He lifts his head up slightly and smiles a little.

"Calm it Chris, he can't kill me that easily," he states. Chris smiles at her best friend. I glance at Dallas who looks, for the first time ever, utterly helpless.

"Dallas? Are you okay?" I ask worriedly. He looks at the door with squinted eyes.

"I didn't come alone, I met up with them on the way here after we split up," he grumbles. I look at him confused until he calls the names out at the door. "Two, Soda, you can come in now." The two boys bust into the house quickly, looking around frantically. Soda spots Chris and quickly runs to her bound and cut body. He plants a long kiss on her lips. After pulling away, he strokes her bloody cheek in lovers caress. Two-Bit goes to Steve.

"Hey buddy," Two greets, looking down at Steve's wound, "you've got more blood on you then Bloody Mary herself." The two boys chuckle.

"Enough, we gotta get outta here," Dallas states. Two-bit nods and he and Soda begin trying to free us. Soda gets Chris untied first and she literally falls into his arms. He holds her up with one arm while trying to get me untied as well. I get one hand free before the door leading into the house comes bursting open again. Charlie walks in with his gun and knife.

"Jesus how many friends do you have you little shit," he says, looking directly at Dallas. Soda leans Chris against the shelf so he has arms to fight with. I hold my breath in anticipation.

"So you're the son of a bitch I keep hearing so much about," Soda hisses.

"Careful Soda," Steve whispers in warning. Soda brushes Steve's comment off.

"He's right, I would be careful," Charlie states with his sneer.

"There's six of us and one of you, you're odds suck," Soda spits. Charlie laughs a chuckle that makes chills run up my back.

"I've got a phone ready to call the cops and tell them all about how Steve here killed Johnny Cade's father with the help of all of you," Charlie states. I remember that night. I had almost died and the only way Steve could get to me was if he stabbed Mr. Cade so he couldn't hurt us. "You will all be charged and thrown in jail and when your children are taken away from you, I, their grandfather, will so willingly step up to take good care of them," Charlie explains. I think about having to hand over Tibby, Aiden, and Shai to Charlie, along with Henry, Josh, and Wesley. The thought makes me completely ill and gray in the face. "So, do you really wanna test me?" Soda's fists clench and his body tenses. With a loud scream of effort he goes sprinting towards Charlie hands outstretched. Charlie whips out his gun and shoots twice. Only one bullet hits Soda. He falls to the ground, holding his blood in. Chris shrieks and throws herself over to his body. Charlie grabs her by the hair before she can reach her husband. Dallas screams and pulls desperately at the rope tying his wrists to the tool desk. Chris cringes as Charlie then holds the knife to her neck. "Anybody moves and I slit her throat." We all go still except for Two-Bit, who falls to the ground, with a hand over a bullet wound on his collar bone, painfully close to his neck. I gasp as he lands, the blood seeping out all over the floor. The shot that missed Soda hit Two-Bit. The wound isn't lethal yet, but now we are all injured in some way, shape, or form.

Charlie has no reason to not kill all of us right this second, and that terrifies me because I doubt he has a merciful bone in his body.

A/N Yay another update, writers block is slowly fading away:) I was so excited because for my birthday a few days ago I got a record player with a bunch of The Door's records and I've been playing them non stop. I'm addicted. This chapter is dedicated to OutsidersObsessed_  and Fangirl2256  who read the beginning of this chapter and were very supportive. Love you guys<3

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