The Runaway ***NIAM AU***

Chapter 20

GOOD MORNING LOVELIES. GO READ CHATER 19 IF YOU HAVEN'T! THEN COME BACK AND READ THIS! ONLY 9 MORE CHAPTERS...MAYBE LESS. IT'S CRUNCH TIME. I HAVE 48ISH HOURS BABES. IT'S ONNNNNNN. THIS CHAP IS SHORT SORRY. I HAVE TO BUILD SUSPENSE YOU KNOW.

****Kate's POV****

Jay held my hand tightly as I raced on the freeway to get to the prison where Niall was being kept. Jay kept telling me not to get my hopes up because they weren't just going to let Niall out of prison, but I had to stay positive for Liam.

"You never know, they might," I gritted my teeth as I swerved into the parking lot and didn't bother to check my park job as I hopped out of the car and started running for the doors. The moment I ran on, cops were on me with guns aimed at me. I stopped in my tracks and began to breathe heavily as Jay came next to me, wrapping his arm tightly around my waist. A cop came over to me and looked at my hand and gestured to the tape.

"What is that?" he asked and I slowly brought it up.

"Niall Horan is innocent," I whispered and the cop narrowed his eyes at me suspicously as he took the tape from me, signalling for the other cops to lower their guns. I let out a breath of relief as I watched as the cop went into the back room and left Jay and I alone with the room full of security cops. I shifted awkwardly and crossed my fingers, praying they'd let Niall just come so they could track down Liam and save him.

"Jay," I whispered and he kissed my cheek. He squeezed my hand and I looked at him nervously. He gave me a reassuring smile as the cop came back out holding the tape.

"This looks like it COULD be Niall, but we still don't know for-," the cop started, and I burst into tears.

"PLEASE! YOU HAVE TO LET HIM HELP ME!" I screamed and the cops all jumped back in surprise as I collapsed to the floor, drowning in my own cries.

"Listen, her friend was taken and he's missing. We don't know where he is and this Niall kid is the only one who knows where they are. I watched the tapes, that kid is innocent...for murder at least!" Jay tried to explain while I curled into a ball and furiously cried as I saw Liam's happy face and the thought of never seeing it again made me go insane.

"I don't know if we can believe you-," the cop started, but I watched Jay slam his fist on the officer's desk.

"Is this not enough proof?!" Jay screamed as he pointed down to me and the cop looked at me nervously while he bit his lip and nodded.

"Alright! Alright," he whispered and I jumped up, clutching Jay as I stared at the cop. He took a deep breath and looked at me.

"I'll go get him, give me a minute," he said softly and I turned to Jay and hugged him so tightly I was scared I was going to break one of his bones. Jay chuckled as he kissed my head and I could finally breath for the first time in weeks.

****Niall's POV****

I ran my fingers across the brick wall again and traced my name into the wall along with Liam's. Liam's name hurt my fingers every time I wrote it, but I wouldn't stop. I was just going to write his name again when I heard my cell door unlock and slide open to reveal light into the room. I jumped up and saw a cop looking at me, holding out a pile of grey clothes. I frowned at him, but stumbled over and took the clothes. I had a feeling I was being transferred to a different cell, or I was being taken outside to do work or run. The cop pointed me to a bathroom and I quickly changed. I came out and the cop handcuffed me, taking me down the never-ending hallway to the entrance of the prison and I was growing more and more confused. When he opened the door the first thing I saw was Kate and she screamed.

"Niall!" she cried and I stared at her in disbelief as the cop unhandcuffed me. I ran over and hugged her, but it didn't last long as the cop pulled me off of her.

"Listen Horan, we're only letting you out because this girl claims her friend has been taken and you know where they've taken him...is this correct?" the cop asked and I nodded frantically.

"My ex-gang took him! If you'd just let me-," I started to ramble, but he stopped me.

"We're going too," the cop said and I froze.

"You can't, you can't come right away...not until I find Liam and get him out of there safely. If the gang finds police he'll kill us both and they'll disappear before you have a chance to track them down," I tried to explain quickly and the cops narrowed their eyes at me, and I knew they didn't believe me.

"Please...I'm telling you the truth!" I cried and I looked over to see Kate crying into who I assumed was her boyfriend Jay's shirt.

"We're putting a tracker on you. You have twenty minutes or we're breaking in. If you get him out in twenty minutes, hide in the car a few miles away and we'll meet you," the cop spoke as he placed a tiny, black device on my pocket. I nodded and went over to Kate, engulfing her into a hug again and whispering in her ear,

"I'm gonna find him." I kissed her cheek and nodded at her boyfriend as she handed me her car keys. I swallowed hard as I began to almost run to the car. Every minute and second counted, and the longer I waited with my few minutes of freedom was more of a chance Liam could be killed. I started the car and didn't hesitate to speed out of the parking lot and into the street. It took me a few minutes to realize I was free, out in the world and could be with Liam if I potentially found him. I lost focus and began to drift into the other side of the road. A car horn honked, bringing me back to reality as I swerved back over and held my head as I tried to recall the route to Zayn's flat.

"Come on," I mumbled under my breath as the red light seemed to be taking hours to change to green, but when it did my tires screeched agasint the ground and I sped down the streets and took the sharpest turns I could to get to my Liam faster. I spotted the house and was literally going 80mph in a 45mph zone to get to Liam as fast as I could. I parked the car and was thankful I saw Zayn's car gone, hoping this would be an easy, quick recovery of Liam and we would live happily ever after, but Zayn had always been good at hiding his car, so I couldn't be absolutely comfortable with going into the flat. I jumped out of my car and ran up to the door, finding it....locked. I began to curse silently, but then scurried back to Kate's car, knowing she HAD to hair a hair pin in her car...she was a girl after all.

"YES!" I exclaimed in a whisper as I found a pin and did a quick celebration dance before I ran back to the door and jiggled it, and finally unlocking it. I sighed in relief and it was eerily quiet as I looked around the familiar flat. I slowly stepped in the flat and took a deep breath.

"Liam?" I called out cautiously and quietly as I began to move around the house. I didn't hear anything, but that didn't mean I was alone. I felt tears in my eyes at the thought of Zayn leaving to discard of Liam's rotted body, and I prayed my thoughts wouldn't be come a reality.

"Liam?" I called a bit louder and still received no response. I held my hands together tightly as I began to think how long Liam had been tied up and probably was given no food or water...or if Liam had been killed immediately after they'd taken him. I swallowed hard and tried to restore a steady pace of breathing, but I was having no such luck. I carefully, and slowly peered into each room in the hallway, each with no luck. I did make an uber quick stop into Zayn's bedroom and demolished his gaming systems in payback for never letting me enjoy them like Liam did. I resumed my search of the flat and was beginning to give up hope as I reached the final room.

"Please, please let Liam be in here," I whispered as I looked up at the ceiling, my hand resting on the knob. I took a deep breath, not getting my hopes up too much as I slowly opened the door...