The Running Man
by Stephen King
Contents
…Minus 070 and COUNTING… Richards walked rapidly to the bathr
Overview
Richards responds to being boxed in at the Y.M.C.A. by suppressing panic and improvising an escape. Using a bent wire toothbrush holder to bypass the elevator's restricted basement access, Richards gets below the building and briefly evades the tightening search.
The chapter matters because Richards's survival now depends less on his disguises and more on desperate, immediate ingenuity under pressure.
Summary
After realizing the police and watchers have bracketed the Y.M.C.A., Ben Richards leaves his room and moves quickly to the bathroom. Richards forces himself to stay calm because panic would make escape impossible.
In the bathroom, Richards finds only one man occupied in the shower and no one at the sinks or urinals. Remembering a childhood trick used to steal newspapers from basements, Richards snaps a wire toothbrush holder off the wall and bends it straight.
Richards goes to the elevator and waits anxiously for the empty cage to arrive. Because the basement button requires a janitor's special access card, Richards jams the wire into the key slot while pressing the basement button, risking an electric shock.
The improvised short circuit works: the panel sparks, gives Richards a mild jolt, and the elevator reluctantly descends. After a tense pause at lobby level, the car continues down and opens into the dim basement, where Richards is alone for the moment and has gained a temporary route away from the trap above.
Who Appears
- Ben RichardsFugitive contestant who improvises a basement escape after realizing he is trapped.