Chapter 7

He missed—barely. The bullet landed in the wall beside me.

I froze. My mind kept yelling ‘run’ but my body didn't move an inch.

The screams of the nurses and the other people present brought me to my senses. As everyone ran around aimlessly in a panic, I dashed to the cafeteria—seeking Damon.

My mother would be safe as long as they didn't know who she was. I just had to find Damon and escape. When I saw him, relief came but it was short-lived. I could hear the screams from the halls. He was close.

Damon looked at me with surprise when he saw me. His face stiffened as he saw the panic in my eyes.

“They're here, aren't they?” He said with sich ease, his eyes unwavering.

I could only nod. Just then, the man burst through the door—his gun in his hand.

Damon grabbed my shoulder and bolted towards the stairs. I wasted no time running after him. There was no way to get to the elevator in time so we had to take the stairs. The tattooed man was in hot pursuit.

We ran as fast as we could to the parking lot but when we got to the staircase entrance, it was locked. Damon used his quick thinking and slammed into the door. He did this twice before he was able to break the lock.

Thinking we had escaped, we ran outside but the tattooed man caught hold of my wrist and yanked me to his side. Damon noticed my absence immediately and turned around.

With the cold pistol pressed against my skull, I struggled frantically. Five men came from nowhere—surrounding us completely.

“I'll blow your brains out if you keep moving.” The man uttered menacingly. His free hand holding my wrist behind my back.

Damon looked calm and calculated. He showed no reaction to our current situation.

“I was told that our little spy was with your company but I didn't think she'd be at your side.” A chuckle escaped from his mouth.

“What are you doing here with this girl? Are you visiting someone or—wait, don't tell me” he began. “Is she your lover or something?” He burst into laughter then his crew followed.

“No wonder she ran to you after she overheard our plan. She's your bitch right? This was all part of your plan, wasn't it?” His hand squeezed my wrist tightly, hurting me even more. He wasn't smiling anymore. He was furious.

“Do you know how badly I was beaten after that incident? I was supposed to be promoted. Now?!” I could feel the pistol dig deeper into my head. “I'm a bottom feeder waiting on scraps. I'll take you and your stupid girlfriend back to headquarters and claim back my title”

I could feel his finger on the trigger when Damon started to laugh. It felt cold and eerie hearing him laugh do maniacally.

“You really think doing that will be enough for you to get back your position? Don't make me laugh, Shadow. Dennis doesn't give second chances”

The man's eye twitched. “Oh really? Then maybe I should just kill you for my own satisfaction.”

But just before he could pull the trigger, a car honked loudly as it drove towards us. The men surrounding us jumped to different directions. Taking advantage of the chaos, Damon quickly ran towards me.

I understood what was going on and ducked.  He kicked the gun out of the Shadow's hand and punched him in the face.

Shadow staggered backwards in pain, releasing me from his grasp. “Let's go.” Damon said as he ran towards the car. It was then I recognized it as to the one that brought us here and got in quickly.

Rocky didn't wait before I closed the door before he started driving. I had to shut it with difficulty—falling backwards as a result.

Damon caught me and pulled me up. He held my face as if he was looking for something on it.

“Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?” His worried expression made my heart race.

“I'm fine. I wasn't hurt too badly.” I tried to shrug it off but my hands were still shaking. I didn't want to look more vulnerable than I already had.

“Where are we going?” I asked curiously. We were not going in the usual direction.

“We’re leaving town for a while. The penthouse is not safe here right now.” he replied.

I shut my eyes tightly. ‘Is this how my life will be now?’ I thought to myself. Just when I go to see my only family again, that’s when Black Falcon took that opportunity from me.

As I wallowed in self pity, I drifted off to sleep—consoling myself with dreams. The sounds of honking stirred me awake. We were in serious traffic. Rocky was trying to move the car steadily, fully focused on the road. Damon was on the phone, talking to someone who sounded annoyed.

It took what felt like forever on the road. When to the red light turned green, the cars began to drive ahead smoothly. We decided to lay low at a rundown motel in the middle of nowhere.

Rocky decided to stay in the car. He wanted to be near the car just in case anything else happened.

Damon and I got into the motel and met with the receptionist. The woman was round and plump with way too much makeup. She was painting her nails.

“Excuse me. We'd like two rooms.” I said politely.

“We only have one room left.” the woman stated. She didn't even look up at me.

“What? There's no other room you could spare?” I asked quietly.

“Take it or leave it, hon.” The woman just kept painting. I looked at Damon, silently urging him to bargain with her.

“If that's the only option, I guess we have to take it.” Damon shrugged.

The woman suddenly looked up at him. She quickly got in a polite posture and smiled brightly. “If you don't want to stay in one room, you can stay the night in the staff room with me.” She winked.

I cringed internally as I watched her gush over him. Some women have no shame. Damon didn't seem to share my opinion as I watched him chuckle softly.

“Too bad I'm already married.” He lied with ease.

The woman's eyes darted towards me—then narrowed. “You two are married?” She pointed at the both of us.

“Yes, we are.” I felt pleased seeing the disappointment on her decorated face.

“Then why don't you want to share a room?” She raised an eyebrow.

“Lover’s quarrel.” I blurted out as I held on to Damon's arms.

The woman only sneered at the gesture. She escorted us to our room before she handed us the key.

The room looked just like I expected. Pale colored curtains draped over the stained glass window.

There was a big bed is n the middle of the room. A long sofa and one lamp glowing dimly. Damon went to the bathroom to check if there was running water.

“The water is running at least. You can shower first.” He grinned.

His smile only made me more annoyed. He seemed to notice my expression. “What's with the long face?”

“Oh, I'm sorry I don't share your enthusiasm.” I gave a snarky reply.

“You seem mad about something.” He crossed his arms.

“How are you so calm?” I looked at him with frustration. “We literally just escaped death and your flirting with a receptionist and giddy for running water?”

Damon stared at me. “This is normal for me. I've lived this way all my life.”

“That's no reason to be so cool about this. I don't even know what's going to come next. I can't think and everything seems to be spinning—”

He spun me around and wrapped his arms around me. Time seemed to stop. My heartbeat began to steady. I melted in his embrace.

“Just breathe.” he whispered softly.