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My entire body was shaking as I lifted my hands up over my head. The first thing my mind told me to do was to react unexpectedly. The man told me to turn and as I did, my hand gripped the iron fireplace poker, hitting the gun from the man’s hand. Victor was no longer in the vicinity and he’d sent his hitmen to finish the job.
“Hijueputa!” He screamed as I ran for the back sliding door.
I had my hands on the handle when he grabbed me by the hair and pulled me back. “Come here.”
I was like a rag doll in his hands, being flung around the room. It was there I spotted a heavy porcelain statue. As he swung me around, I managed to grab it. He was yelling for the other men, and I had to quickly do something to quiet him. So I reached back and slammed the statue onto his head.
“Fuck!” He cried out, grabbing his head and releasing me.
I kicked him hard in the groin, and watched him go to his knees.
“Te voy a matar, perra!”
He reached for me, and I swung again. The statue cracking against his skull. As he moaned and fell to his side, men started entering from the front of the house. I burst through the sliding door and ran into the darkness, my heart pounding with adrenaline. I could hear the sound of footsteps chasing after me, and as I ran across the backyard, I could hear the sound of gunshots and shouting behind me. But I didn't look back. I kept running, my heart pounding in my chest, until I reached the safety of the streetlights. I pushed myself harder, running faster than I ever had before.
Picking up my cell phone, I ran into the swamps adjacent, not caring about being eaten by gators, just trying to get away as fast as possible. Thunder started to roll, and rain started pouring down. I could see streams of light filter in through the trees as they aimed their flashlights toward me, but I was well hidden.
Suddenly, Victor’s voice ran out. “Te voy a encontrar maldita! Tenlo por Seguro que te voy encontrar!”
I trembled in fear as I made my way through that murky water. Eventually I was able to step out and found the road. I collapsed on the pavement, gasping for breath, my heart still pounding in my chest. I couldn’t stop here, they’d find me, so I ran into town as fast as I could. I needed to find Abigail. She was my only hope.
3
SNARE
I gazedat my commanding officer, awaiting his signal. We were deep in the Afghan desert on a critical mission, far away from civilization, amid a depressing war. When he signaled, we moved rapidly and covertly, breaching the door of a decrepit house.
Shouts could be heard deep within, women screaming, men found raping young girls. They'd already killed three young children. Their heads smashed in as they lay limp on the floor. I ignored them, as sadly, we weren’t there for them.
Our target was Abu-Zar Azeem, a member of the Taliban. Though this was our sole purpose, I couldn't ignore the children in need of aid. Suddenly, shots rang out, and pandemonium ensued. One of our soldiers had observed a man trying to slit a young girl's throat with a knife and shot him in the head, alerting the occupants of the house.
My commanding officer gestured for me to proceed down one hallway while he took the other. We smashed open every door, each one revealing a more gruesome sight than the last. Blood-stained sheets, a woman hanging from the ceiling, her legs left dangling. I closed my eyes and tried to ignore it all, but it was impossible. Eventually, I discovered our target, huddled in a corner, his hands held high. I was surrounded by the cacophony of shouts in another language when a man appeared, brandishing a gun.
"Drop the weapon! Drop it now!" I screamed, but he didn't listen, and I was forced to shoot him. Another man emerged, shouting in the same language, and I had no choice but to end his life as well. Eventually, I cleared the room and extracted the target at gunpoint. This was what I had signed up for, but it had destroyed me. The girls' faces and screams continued to haunt me, and then there was banging of those doors…
I woke up screaming, along with the memory of those children, but the banging on my door didn't cease. I had fallen asleep on top of bills for the bar Riddick and I co-owned. My apartment was on the second floor, and the knocking was coming from my back door.
"What the hell?" I muttered, throwing open the door to find her standing there. My obsession, Catalina SOlano, was soaked to the bone and ghostly pale.
"Help me, please help me," she begged, falling into my arms. She was shivering and drenched, her eyes closing as she collapsed unconscious.
"Catalina, Catalina, wake up!" I said softly, gently slapping her cheek to rouse her, but she remained unresponsive.
I wondered for how long she had been running. I knew Solano had many enemies and made more when he decided to take on the Bloody Scorpions. Those bastards were like pests; no matter how many we eliminated, they always reappeared.
I lifted her in my arms, shut the door, and carried her to the bedroom. It was only when I laid her down that I realized she wasn't wearing any shoes. The rain had soaked through her white, frilly blouse, and I forced myself to focus on what to do next, even as the sight of her wet breasts pressed against the soft material clouded my mind.
I focused on keeping her warm, reminding myself that she was a stranger and meant nothing to me. I tried to ignore the way my body reacted to the sight of her white lacy panties or the way my arousal grew as I touched her soft, full breasts, their dark pink areolas hardening under my fingertips. I turned away from her as I grabbed one of my t-shirts, shielding her from my view.
Taking a deep breath, I headed toward the door. Just as I reached the entrance to my apartment, the doorknob jiggled. I froze, staring intently at the shadow of a figure beneath my door. I made my way to the kitchen, grabbing the thirty-eight caliber pistol I kept in one of the drawers.
This time the door was banged on, the hinges rattling. I positioned myself behind the door, sneaking a peek out the window. Despite the rain, I could see that he hadn't come alone. A man stood under the light post in front of the bar on the first floor, and I could make out two unmarked cars at the end of the street.
I had two options: take my chances with the girl and get her out of here, or confront the men and shoot them all dead.
I chose the latter.
I made my way to the bedroom, carefully retrieving the silencer from under the bed. I didn't want to alert the men below. Suddenly, the front door blasted open, and my instincts kicked in. Moving quickly and quietly down the hallway, I hid in the darkness of the bathroom. As the man passed by, I counted to three, stepped out, and shot him twice in the head. I checked his pulse to ensure he was dead before moving towards the front door.
