#25

Eli was definitely having a bad day.

To be honest, he wasn't even that mad about being kidnapped—again. He figured it was bound to happen sooner or later. Especially with the whole crazed-mercenary thing going on. Of course, he'd hoped, it wouldn't. Of only because Adria seemed to be putting some effort into keeping him alive. But obviously, God didn't love Eli enough to keep him from getting dragged into some unknown place and tied to a chair.

Still, the worst part was still Mikey having taken his phone. For a minute, Eli had hoped that the goon would forget about it. Not that Eli was ever that lucky.

Which was why he wasn't even surprised when Mikey pulled over in an empty sidestreet once they'd left the convention center and demanded his phone. Eli handed it over readily because, despite what Matthew liked to think, he wasn't suicidal. Besides, Mikey already looked like he wanted to toss Eli out of a moving car and into traffic. Probably because Eli had bitten him, which, fair enough.

Eli was just glad that, for once, he hadn't gotten knocked out. He figured he should give points to his kidnapper for having some manners.

Then he got some sort of cloth bag thrown over his head and Eli took those points back.

Not long after that, Eli was dragged out of the car and into what he assumed was yet another freaking warehouse. He was almost certain of it. Mainly because he'd yet to run into a criminal who didn't frequent one.

At least, that's what he thought until they went up a ramp and then started going downstairs. He didn't think many warehouses had underground levels. Suddenly, Eli wished he'd paid more attention to his surroundings. Maybe then he'd have a better idea of where he was.

Not that it would help.

He didn't even struggle as he was shoved onto a chair and tied up. Eli didn't think struggling would help. Especially when Mikey was probably still around. There was just something about a guy that could quite possibly crush Eli's skull with his hand that told the redhead to behave. At least, as long as Matthew wasn't around.

"Don't do anything stupid," Mikey muttered as he finished tying Eli up. Honestly, the warning was a bit unnecessary. It wasn't like Eli wanted to do something dumb, it was just that sometimes, his mouth tended to get him in trouble before his brain could stop it.

Mikey didn't say anything else before Eli heard him walk away, his steps echoing in a way that made Eli think the floor was probably metal. Which was weird. Eli was officially out of ideas on where he'd been taken. Not that he'd thought of it being anything other than a warehouse.

He heard the door close behind Mikey, creaking the whole way, and then Eli was left alone in absolute silence. Eli didn't mind that, to be honest. He just wished Mikey had taken the stupid hood off his head.

"This sucks," Eli muttered, voice muffled by the cloth.

Honestly, Eli was surprised at himself for how well he was taking the whole thing. Maybe it was just because he'd been kidnapped so often. Or maybe it was just that he'd kind of seen it coming. Granted, he hadn't expected Mikey to be the one to do it.

I knew he was shady, Eli thought. Maybe he should have protested more about having Mikey follow them around. Sure, Adria seemed to trust him, but then again she probably didn't make the best life choices. Eli could relate.

He took some comfort in knowing at least this time it wasn't his life choices that got him in trouble—it was Matthew's. Not that it helped a lot because Eli was still screwed. If he survived, he was definitely complaining to his mother about Matthew. He figured it was the worst punishment he could possibly deal out.

Of course, first Eli had to get out alive.

Yeah, not looking good, he thought after taking a moment to assess the situation.

He was sitting in some unknown place, presumably alone, tied to a chair, and he couldn't even see anything. Definitely not looking good for Eli. Honestly, his only hope was that Matthew would somehow figure out where he was and get him out, because Eli sure didn't trust Adria to be of any help.

Wonder if she knows Mikey's an asshole. Eli figured she probably didn't think he was a traitorous asshole. Eli was still disappointed he hadn't figured that out either.

With a defeated sigh, Eli leaned back against the chair he was tied to. He tried not to focus on the fact that he was cold, hungry, and could possibly get murdered in a shitty Vigilante shirt. All in all, things weren't great.

At least I didn't get punched, Eli told himself, trying to look at the bright side. He probably should have known better than to expect there to be a bright side.

The door opened with a creak that made Eli jump in his seat. At least, as much as was possible while being tied to sait seat. He heard footsteps against the metal floor, each one closer than the last, and felt himself tense. Then, the steps stopped, the room silent once again. Eli sat there and tried to get his rapidly beating heart under control before he had a heart attack. Although, at least then he wouldn't give anyone the satisfaction of murdering him. Still, Matthew would have a fit if he died, so Eli would try to stay alive for a while longer.

"You're scrawnier than I remember." Eli might have been more startled by the sudden voice if he weren't so offended.

"I'd say the same to you but I can't see shit." Eli inwardly sighed as he automatically went back to his snarky ways. Honestly, if Matthew didn't hurry Eli would just get himself murdered. He heard a huff—hopefully an amused one and not one of resignation at having to get all bloody while murdering a certain redhead.

Eli was relieved when the cloth covering his head was pulled off. It took his eyes a moment to adjust, even with the lighting being so dim. When they did, Eli kind of wished that he couldn't see a thing still.

He hadn't gotten a good look at the guy who'd stabbed him. Not when he was too busy literally fighting for his life and worrying about his mother. Even then, there was no denying that the man standing in front of Eli was the same from that night. Eli still found himself staring, mostly because he was finally in front of the guy Matthew and Adria had been after for so long. It was a bit anticlimactic, to be honest.

Sure, he was a tall guy, broad too with the type of build that would be a definite help if he decided to throw Eli out a window. But for the most part, the guy was just normal. He wasn't like Mikey, who practically screamed shady goon. Hell, he wasn't even like Adria, who had a clever gaze and the kind of smile that made it clear she could and would shoot a guy.

Eli looked at the guy's pale face, at his neatly cut dirty blond hair, and saw a guy he wouldn't really look at twice if he walked past him on the street. Then, he looked at his eyes—dark eyes with a glint of something Eli didn't like—and finally found the man who'd been hunting them for so long.

"What, you're going quiet on me now?" the guy—Jack, Eli reminded himself as he thought of what Adria had told them—said with a faint smirk.

"Don't really have much to say." Besides that, Eli figured it'd be better for him and his face if he stayed as quiet as possible.

"Really? No questions? And here I thought you'd have more to say, considering the trouble you've been going through trying to find me."

"I wasn't trying to find you. So yeah, not much to say," Eli lied. He had plenty to say. Unfortunately, most of that would probably get him stabbed. Again.

"So I guess you don't want to know why you're here?"

"Because you want to murder me?" Eli probably shouldn't have asked that. Too late to regret it though.

"If I wanted to kill you I would have done it already. You're not exactly difficult to get to." That wasn't very reassuring.

"Oh. That's good." It wasn't. Eli was just glad he hadn't said anything that could get him killed. "So, er, if you're not gonna kill me, can I go now?"

Of course, the guy just laughed at Eli. And okay, fair enough. At least Eli had tried.

"Unfortunately, I'm going to need your help. You can leave once I get what I want. Oh, unless you die before that." Eli didn't appreciate the casual way in which he said that.

He might have said something about it if the door hadn't opened then, possibly interrupting Eli from committing suicide by stupidity. Mikey walked in carrying something Eli couldn't quite make out thanks to Jack standing in the way.

"Oh good, we're ready to start," he said. Eli didn't like how happy the guy sounded. He also didn't like the way he was smirking as he walked closer to Eli. "Be good and shut up for a while okay?" And with that, he pulled the hood back over Eli's head.

With nothing to see, Eli concentrated on what he could hear. They seemed to be setting something up, most likely whatever Mikey had been carrying. As usual, Mikey was silent, which Eli usually appreciated. Right at that moment, he wished the guy would decide to do a whole commentary on what was going on.

Eli wasn't surprised that didn't happen. It was still a little disappointing.

"Good enough," Jack said after a moment. Eli noted he sounded impatient. Which was better than murderous, he supposed.

He heard someone walking closer, and kind of hoped it was Mikey. At least he didn't have a history of stabbing him in the gut. Of course, Eli could never get what he wanted.

"You stay nice and quiet." And there was the murderous tone. It was so good, Jack didn't even need to add an actual threat. Eli gave a nod, mostly because he didn't know what else to do in that situation.

Jack walked a couple of steps away and stopped. It was quiet for a moment. Enough so that Eli's breath sounded far too loud with the hood over his head. He felt his heard beating quickly in his chest, and was amazed he hadn't noticed before just how much he was absolutely freaking out. He supposed he'd kind of gotten used to being in weird—potentially deadly—situations.

At last, after what felt like hours, Jack spoke.

"Hello everyone. Hope you're having fun at your little party."

# # #

Hey everyone! So here's the actual next chapter and not just another act of pure pettiness, lol. I suppose I've decided to finish the story on here, even though I did seriously consider not doing so because of all the times my works have been taken by mirror sites. It gets tiring after a while, even when I know that having my work stolen like that is a risk of posting online. But, this is almost over and I do owe it to you all who've been so patient with me and my constant breaks.

I'll most definitely be posting a slightly edited version of this on Tapas in the future, so you can check that out there. I'll also be posting and finishing some stuff on there later, so if you're interested, link's on my profile.

Other than that, hope you all liked this chapter! Next one should be up on Friday, July 23rd. I promise next one won't be painful. Can't promise that about future ones though. :D

Have a great weekend everyone and stay safe!

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