Thomas watched from the main security room as Conway, Reynolds and Adams slipped through staff quarters stealthily, tranquilising officers and moving their bodies under their desks quietly. He leaned back in his seat and kicked his feet up on the control board, his eyes lazily flicking between the screens. He noticed John begin to slip out of his cell block on one screen and sat up swiftly, clicking on his ear piece.

"Laurens is headed your way, get back to your marks boys," he muttered, then proceeding to turn and check for Levi's current position.

Behind him flustered but muffled shouts were heard from Peggy and Dolley, both tied up and gagged at the back of the room.
"Would you shut up?" Jefferson spat before turning his focus back to the screens.
How had a day spent on a blind date Eliza had set up resulted in her being held captive at the back of the security room? Peggy groaned and turned to Dolley, using her eyes and brows to communicate their course of action. Dolley nodded quickly and ever so carefully slipped behind Peggy with their backs to each other, beginning to fiddle with each other's cuffs. Their attention was snapped else where quickly though.

Jefferson had flicked on the sound for one of the screens and suddenly static was echoing softly through the room, followed by hurried footsteps as John jogged onto the screen. The girls watched with wide eyes, Peggy managing to spit out her fabric gag, as he swung his head side to side, a scared expression painted across his features.
"HELLO?" His muffled voice called out desperately. Peggy bit her lip nervously, dying to just reach through the screen and save him. "PEGGY?" That made Peggy's stomach flip and she became even more antsy to escape. John needed her, he was relying on her. She felt tears prickle her eyes when she saw Levi creeping and crawling through the hallway towards John's voice on another screen. Not today you spider bitch.

"I'm distracting, you know what to do," she whispered under her breath to Dolley. Dolley nodded and began to ever so carefully shuffle around the edges of the room.
Peggy ignored trying to get out of the cuffs and just decided to go for it, pushing herself up to her feet cautiously but standing with purpose once she was up. Jefferson still had his back to her in his seat as she advanced forward, sneaking up slowly before kicking her leg up and tucking it around Jefferson's neck, bringing her leg back down and throwing him into the floor. Jefferson came crashing off his chair with a firm thud and yelped, thrashing and jumping up to his feet. Peggy jumped, using her arms like a skipping rope and swinging them under her legs to bring them in front of her.
"Let's dance pretty boy," she growled, raising her attached fists and shifting her weight ready to dodge.

Jefferson resisted the urge to laugh at her as he crossed his arms.
"As if you could-" he began to smirk before Peggy surged forward and sent a sharp jab with both fists to his stomach. As he doubled over and stumbled back she travelled with him, spinning and slamming her elbow into his nose. Jefferson groaned, hunched over while Peggy never let her guard drop.
"I call this move, ngh revenge!" She swung her fists up in two-fisted uppercut motion, catching under his jaw and whipping his head backwards, slamming him into the control panel. Jefferson hitting the panel switched on the audio for another screen again, and Peggy's eyes darted up when she heard Alex screaming over the speakers.
"JOHN!"

Alex's cell door shook as he was pounding and kicking at it wildly, Peggy's jaw hanging slack in shock-horror as John was dragged off screen, thrashing but unable to make a sound with the bag held over his face blocking his airways.
"GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM HIM! JOHN! SOMEBODY HELP!" Alex's voice called out again.
"Dolley!" Peggy called out nervously, her attention being thrown back to Jefferson as he clutched his bleeding nose.
"Bitch!" He roared, pushing off the control panel and launching himself at her. She squeaked in surprise as he pushed her forward, slamming her into the ground. He held her down and wrapped his hands around her neck, squeezing ever so gently.

"NononACK-" Peggy was cut off when her breath caught in her throat, her airways compressing under his grip. "J-John," she spluttered, clawing at Jefferson's hands and trying weakly to shove him off of her.

I don't care if you have to fucking murder them, nothing is getting in my way tonight.

Levi's words chanted in Jefferson's head as Peggy slowly began to run out of time underneath his grip.
"Let go of her!" Dolley screamed, completely forgetting what she was meant to be doing and running forward. Jefferson blinked and snapped out of his bloodlust trance, releasing Peggy when Dolley grabbed his shoulder roughly, backing away from her quickly. Dolley threw herself forward and grabbed Peggy, pulling her upright and trying desperately to help her control her breaths. "What the fuck? You almost killed her!" Dolley screeched with wide eyes, clutching Peggy tightly. Jefferson stared down at his hands in horror. He just tried to kill somebody. He made threats all the time, but never would he actually commit murder.

"I- I..." he muttered, looking back up at the girls. Peggy pushed herself out of Dolley's grip weakly and crawled towards the panel, skimming her fingers over the many buttons. Finally she found the segment for cell doors and slammed the emergency button, releasing all the prisoners with as much energy as she could muster. On the screens she watched the prisoner's cell doors all hiss open through each cell block, Alex literally falling out of his cell at the sudden release of the door before scrambling to his feet. He screamed with tears spilling from his eyes and sprinted out of the cell block, looking side to side frantically at a loss for where they had gone.

Peggy pulled herself up onto a chair and grabbed the PA microphone, flipping it on and gasping a deep breath. She examined the screens until she spotted Levi, who had met up with Conway, dragging John down below the prison.
"Alex, boiler room!" she gasped, still at a loss for breath. Alex looked up at the sky blindly upon hearing the voice, his eyes wide and pupils dilating in fear and surprise.
"Tha-Thanks!" he yelled to wherever the voice had come from before launching himself down the hallway.

Peggy turned back to Jefferson who was standing dumbstruck and Dolley who was still crouched on the floor watching everything unfold.
"Peggy I'm sor-" Jefferson began to whisper before Peggy cut him off aggressively.
"Save it! I'm not the one who needs an apology! Why are you doing this? Do you think it's funny? Are you getting paid?" She spat, advancing forward menacingly.
"I- yeah-" he swallowed, clutching his fists to his stomach.

"What if that was Madison huh? How would you feel if Levi dragged Madison off and you were trapped in a cell able to do fuck all?" She roared, squinting at him accusingly. Jefferson began to feel light headed just imagining the situation and his eyes widened. He never thought of it that way. He had made his decision.

He made an advance for the PA, pushing past Peggy and lifting the microphone to his lips.
"Levi, it's over." he spoke firmly. On a screen in the corner Levi and Conway stopped walking. Levi dropped John, causing his head to smash into the linoleum with a massive smack, as he walked right up to the nearest security camera.
"Excuse me?" he hissed, baring his teeth like he was about to rip into someone's flesh in attack.
"Conway I want John returned to his cell safely, you'll still get your money," He ordered, switching the microphone off. "I'll resign in the morning." He muttered.

"Oh no no," Levi cackled sarcastically, lifting an accusing finger to the camera, twitching erratically. "You, you, don't make the calls around here. I do! I do!" He roared at the camera, flailing his fists wildly. "Y-your precious Madison? I snapped his ribs, HAHAHA I did it! And his neck will be next if you don't listen to me! I make the fucking calls!" He screamed. Jefferson's stomach dropped to his toes and he was surely going to faint. This entire time he had been helping the man who had caused the end of his relationship with the love of his life.

Pure, sizzling anger boiled in his stomach, rising in his body and threatening to explode any second now. Levi turned away from the camera and sauntered back to John's limp body, possibly unconscious from the trauma to his head. He heaved him back up and they continued off screen.

Jefferson spun on his heel and began to make his way to the security room exit.
"Where are you going now?" Peggy hissed, venom dripping from her lips. He hesitated.
"Levi has a lighter," Jefferson spoke quietly.
"How the fuck did he get a-" Peggy examined Jefferson's expression. "You didn't. Oh my god." She groaned, pushing up to her feet. "Fuck."

---

Lafayette spotted Alex dashing down the hall and he grabbed Hercules by his shirt.
"There!" He yelled, tugging Hercules sharply. The rest of their group caught on and they chased after Alex frantically, calling out after him but to no avail. Lafayette, Hercules, Samuel and Charles had all met up at Alex's cell when the doors opened after hearing Peggy's breathless voice over the PA.

"Alex wait! What's going on?" Hercules yelled after him as they ran down the hall, shoes slapping against the linoleum in a furious blur.
"JOHN," he screamed, "LEVI," he gasped.
Eyes widened and fury bubbled, everything making sense with those two words.

The group chased Alex until they hit the door leading to the stairs that travelled under the prison. Peggy was quick to open the mechanic door for them from the security room, and Alex threw himself down the stairs at bullet speed, slipping and stumbling a few times in his mad rush with tears of fear still spilling down his cheeks in an endless stream. They reached the boiler room doors and Alex threw them open, slamming the them into the walls they were connected to with a massive crash.

Levi's hunched, bloodcurdling frame stood over John, who knelt in front of him facing the group limply, once Lafayette's now Levi's lighter dangerously close to John's face. The room reeked of petrol and was dimly lit by the red safety lights above each machine and exit/entry point. The group crowded at the door, frozen with fear as John whimpered at Levi's feet, the flames licking his cheek for a moment as Levi let the lighter stray a little too close.
"Boys, how nice of you to join us," Levi grinned maliciously, his expression the definition of the word sadistic.

"Step away from John, Levi," Alex ordered in a low growl, his voice wavering a little when he met John's scared gaze.
"How many times do I have to tell you people?" Levi groaned, grabbing John's hair and tugging his head towards him violently. "I MAKE THE CALLS." He yelled.
"If you lay one finger on him-" Alex began to threaten, advancing forward bravely, but Levi interrupted him sharply.
"I won't." He stated simply. Everyone was taken aback by that.

"Y-you- then what-" Alex questioned but Levi continued without acknowledging him.
"Nobody will." He finished with a calm and collected grin, his hunched shoulders pushing back into a neat form. He removed the lighter from beside John's cheek and held it to his own face, illuminating only the side that was scorched, scarred and deformed in a thatched pattern of ripped skin.

With one hand holding John's head and the other holding the lighter he kicked a leg out and knocked something over with a heavy thud, the gluggy sound of liquid leaking out onto the floor filling the room. Everyone's eyes flew towards the sound and a chorus of sharp breaths echoed when two and two was put together. Levi had kicked over a drum of gasoline that was leaking out and flooding the room.

"If I can't have John, nobody can," Levi hissed with a spine-chilling grin. He wasn't going to rape John. He wasn't going to kill John. He was going to kill literally everyone else.
"No," Alex whispered, his eyes glazed with fear and horror. Levi cackled like a hyena in an insane manner, whipping John's head around with his sharp jerks of laughter.

Everything after that happened in slow motion.

John's arm swung up and he jabbed Levi in the gut with his elbow.

The lighter slipped from Levi's finger tips.

It spun to the floor in an insidious wheel of flames.

"JOHN!"
Then John's vision was engulfed with the colour red.