Rabbit Hole

Some Concerns

TW: THE FOLLOWING CHAPTER CONTAINS DISCUSSIONS OF ABDUCTION, VIOLENCE AND GRIEF/REVENGE.

After that, we were all a little on edge. Some of us tried to continue like nothing happened.
Other still had things they wanted to confront.

Liv's POV

It hadn't even been two hours since he made that promise. Already gone back on it. We were all in agreement, except for him. How could someone-
"Liv!"
Speak of the fucking devil.
"What the hell was that?"
"Oh come on, don't tell me you're mad at me for that now too?"
"We could have taken him."
"Are you kidding? He had a gun. I was trying to save the most people as possible."
"I had a knife in my hand. If someone on the other side of the room moved, I could have thrown it into his head."
"Because you're an expert on knife throwing."
"I've already killed one person with a knife."
"Did you throw it?"
"No, but I've had experience knife throwing."
"Where could you possibly get experience for that?"
"Look, I was scared of people just before you found me. I was practicing self defence in case I ever needed to do that."
"When would you have ever needed to-"
"I was overthinking things, Andrew. Besides, that wasn't even the only plan. We could have all scattered."
"He'd have shot us."
"Not if he didn't knw where to aim. Everyone in every direction, he wouldn't know where to shoot until the gun was gone out of his hand."
"It would never have worked. He seemed smarter than that."
"Ace cracked him in seconds and we knew something was up as soon as he said his "son's" name was Lloyd. I killed Cole, Lloyd was a fake name."
"Ok, he wasn't the smartest, but he wouldn't fall for something like that."
"Wouldn't he?"
"You don't know that-"
"And you didn't know that I would miss."
"Look, Liv. It was the best option in the moment-"
"So what was your plan then, Andrew? What was your foolproof idea that would keep us all safe?"
"Go along with it until we're there, then we all break out."
"How would we have done that?"
"We all fight back at once."
"How do you know we'd have all been in the same place? How do you know that they wouldn't just lock us up seperately and torture us one by one?"
"I- They don't have enough rooms for that-"
"I was in that damn facility for a month. I know that actually, yes they do."
"They'd want to draw it out as much as possible-"
"They could have done 1 a day, while we were all in seperate rooms, that's much worse than keeping us all together. Your plan made no sense!"
"You just don't- it doesn't matter anyway. We're all safe and alive now."
"It does matter. Remeber what you said literally hours before?"
"Oh for fuck's sake- You're really linking that to this? Both of those, I had logic I considered reasonable at the time-"
"reasonable. REASONABLE? HOW WAS LEAVING ME TO POTENTIALLY FUCKING DIE IN THE FOREST REASONABLE?"
"If I got away, then I could go back to save you when they weren't expecting it-"
"I was already in a van going down a road fifteen fucking miles away by the time you would have got back. Another terrible plan."
"I realise that, and it was stupid-"
"But you did it again? Say whatever you want, NOTHING HAS CHANGED. You're stilltoo worried about your own self-preservation to try to save anyone but yourself."
"I'm thinking of everyone for the best solution in the moment."
"Well you seem to consistently think of the worst ones."

He goes to argue, but he stops.

"You know what? Maybe you've got a point. How about you take the lead from now on."
"Ok. But today was the last time right? You'll try change now?"
"No promises I'll be right, but I can try."
"Alright then. Try to stick to that this time."

Ace's POV

Ok, I can't be the only one concerned about this Elliott guy. I'll be honest, he seems like a little bit of a psycho. Nobody is that sadistic killing someone and is completely fine with it afterwards. He'll end up really fucking up something and potentially putting this all at risk. Someone needs to talk to him, guess I'll elect myself to do it.

"Elliott?"
"Here we go." He replies, knowing full well what I'm about to say, but he's already dismissed me before I had a chance to speak.
"We need to talk about the officer."
"What's there to talk about?"
"You were way too enthusiastic killing him."
"How is that an issue? He was a monster."
"We didn't know that. He could have just been in a bad position and this was the last job he could take."
"Don't tell me you're trying to defend him. He'd have got you tortured as well, you know?"
"Believe me, I wanted that bastard dead too. I held a gun to his head for god's sake, I just thought that maybe stabbing him about a dozen times-"
"32."
"What?"
"I stabbed him 32 times."
"You counted?"
"What else was I supposed to do?"
"Maybe not stabbed him multiple times."
"You know what? You're right. I should have used a brach. Caved his head in."
"What is it with this obsession with making them feeling the most pain as possible?"
"Whatever these monsters are, because they aren't human, they don't feel regret for the atrocities they do or are complaicent in normally. They have to be put through ten times the pain they inflicted for them to realise. But it's too late for them anyway."
"You're sadistic."
"Am I? AM I? I just want to get revenge."
"Elliott, this won't help Mark-"
"I'm not doing it for him alone. This is also for me. I want to know that the ones that took my brother away from me have paid the proper toll for what they did. I want to make sure they can never hurt anyone again."
"I get that, but this is a little far-"
"Tell me you wouldn't have done the same if Pat died instead of Mark."

I go to answer, but I can't. I'd like to say I'd have been calmer, but now that I think about it, I'd probably have been just as violent.

"Exactly, and you would have lost a friend, not a family member."
"For some people, friends are more loyal and important than family ever was."
"My point still stands, Ace. If it was someone you loved, you'd want to unleash hell as well."
"Ok, you know what? Maybe you're onto something. But can we take a different approach?"
"What would you suggest?"
"Lewis, Wilfred, Clyde, Carol, we don't hold back. They really have nothing to defend themselves with. But the fake officers and any other secret workers they have, we can kill, but not in a way like you did. If we kill them, it's a one or two strike thing. Got it?"
"You know what? Your terms make sense. And maybe I went a little far with him. I'd apologise if he was worth apologising for. So I change going forward. One or two strikes."
"Glad we could get on the same page with this."
"I wouldn't quite say that, but I'm glad you understood my side."

Elliott's POV

I'll admit, maybe I was too sadistic with him. But my anger is not misplaced. I know it's not just my brother, it's thousands more victims that this place has claimed, and I just want all of this to end. For good. But as much as I hated admiting it, Ace was right. I went too far with the officer.
But he shouldn't believe I'm toning myself down. When it gets to the ringleaders, especially Clyde, I'll make what I did to the officer look like mercy.