by S. S. Sahoo
A table was saving us from the gunshots.
With utter difficulty, we made it inside and I made the man sit up and lean against the wall where I took a handkerchief out of my bag and applied it to his wound.
“Th-Thank You,” he said and I nodded.
“What are we going to do? Why are they after us? What did I do?” I shot questions at the wounded man and he took the handkerchief from me tying it around his wound.
“I don’t have any idea. We are soon going to be out of bullets and then we might be a problem” he said and I put my hand on my mouth saving myself from screaming.
“Don’t worry this has been informed to Boss. Our men will be on their way. We just need to hang up a little more” he said and I fell on my knees not really believing him.
“This is all happening because of me. People are getting injured just because of me. But I don’t even know what I did to get all this” I cried silently and the man looked at me pitifully.
“We are out of bullets” I heard Willi.
I moved towards the door and from my sitting position peeped at him.
“Then come inside!” I whisper yelled at him and the other man.
“What are you doing there? Close the door!” he ordered.
“You are not my boss. Just come inside” I demanded which made him look up at the others.
The others were too hiding behind the tables and were looking at him clearly confused.
“We can’t! We need to save you” one of the men said.
“Then I don’t want to be saved risking other people lives. Just get inside!” I demanded and as soon as I said that the gunshots began.
I squealed and dived back in fear when a bullet hit the door.
“Careful!” yelled Willi.
“Damn!” I heard another guy and I peep through the space between the hinge and the door to the driver of ours from before, holding his left eye in his hand as blood flowed down.
“Oh my-” I kept my hand on my mouth horrified.
“Stay back!” Willi said.
Seconds later we heard the gunshot stopping and I had this idea that they knew about our condition. We were completely out of bullets.
“They are coming this way!” the man who shot his shoulder beforehand spoke looking through the small opening of the window.
“We gotta use our hands then!” Willi said and he positioned himself in a lunging one, preparing to lunge forward when they were near.
“He is aiming his gun this. Don’t do that” I cried looking at Willi. If he lunged at him then definitely he was going to die.
“We have no choice,” he said.
I sat back on my position and leaned against the wall feeling helpless. If this was how we were going to die, then I was definitely going to die a painful death.
Memories of a body falling before me, pooled with blood flooded back into my mind. It was happening again. First, it was Emmett and now it’s the one who is ready to die willingly just to save a pity soul like me.
This made me cry even more because I wasn’t worth their lives. If risking their own life saving a pitiful one like mine was the cost that they were going to pay then I would be more than happy to die if that could save theirs.
I breathed in and out. I was feeling dizziness now. My head began to rotate and I held my head with my hand wincing and whimpering.
“Why am I so helpless?” I found myself talking.
“Why am I so pitiful?” I cried out.
“Why? Why am I so weak?” I pulled my hair in frustration.
I closed my eyes in aggravation. A weakling like me doesn’t deserve to live. What am I? What did I do?
I can never forget that it was me for whom a person died earlier and I am the same person for whom again several lives are in danger.
Then we heard the gunshots. Again.
I closed my eyes and held my hands on my ears not wanting to hear the screams of the people who were dying. Just because of me.
“No! No! No!”
“Stop it!” I yelled.
“Ma’am!”
“Ma’am!” I opened my eyes and looked at the man next to me who was wounded earlier on his shoulder.
“Look outside! It’s our man! They are here” he said and I couldn’t believe what he was saying.
I could hear people screaming and the gunshots. I thought that they reached here and they killing Zachary’s man.
Gathering up courage, I looked through the space between the door and the hinge to see several men firing from the other side of the road.
They were shooting at the men who were near us whose intention was to harm us.
“It’s our boss!” I heard Willi and hope lit up inside me when I got up on my feet and looked towards the way where Willi was looking.
Sure enough there he was. But he was wearing a mask on his face covering his face and he was wearing a black jacket covering his body.
I would never have recognized him if it wasn’t for Willi. I guess Willi was accustomed to Zachary’s way of fighting and showing up in public.
Then it clicked me. According to public, Zachary was a billionaire businessman but they had no idea about his dark side which was a mafia leader.
Obviously, he would never show up his true self before the public. He was shielding his face and his identity from the ordinary people.
“Take it losers!” I heard a man from our side screaming in victory.
Our enemies were circled from all the direction by Zachary’s man. And this time they were the one who was out of bullets. I looked as Zachary walked aiming his gun towards the hoodie man from before. I had no idea what was Zachary thinking or doing.
“Surrender yourself if you want to live,” a man from Zachary’s side said to the enemies.
“You wish!” the hoodie man said and pointed his gun directly at Zachary’s direction. Immediately, several guns were aimed at him by Zachary’s man.
But it was Zachary who stood there calmly and patiently with no hint of fear in his body. He crossed his hands over his chest and waited for the hoodie man to take his next step.
I wanted to scream.
Its funny how I am the one who doesn’t the same person who killed my love die before me. I prayed internally and hoped that Zachary would step out of the way or he would get hurt. Worst, he would die.
The hooded man laughed. A good throaty laughing before he pointed the gun back at his direction and bam.
I closed my eyes not wanting to see what happened.
It happened so quickly that nobody got any chance to do anything. The man killed himself.
“But why?” I thought.
I breathed in and out and then in and out. It was too much for a day. It was my first time encountering so much death and blood before me.
I felt nauseous now, so I leaned back at the wall to save myself from tumbling down.
I could hear their footsteps. He was coming.
I kept my hand on my eyes shielding them from seeing any more blood. It was just enough for a day or should I say lifetime? I don’t wish to see blood even from a small cut on my hand or anything. It was enough.
I felt his cold hand on mine and I felt him removing my hand from my eyes. But I refused to open to open my eyes. I refused to see any more blood or pain.
I felt him wrapping something around me and my head was covered using a cloth. No words came out of my mouth when I felt myself being scooped up from the ground into his arms.
I couldn’t see anything and I was glad that I couldn’t. I clutched tightly on his shirt while he carried me back towards where I guessed was the car.
“Boss!” I recognized that voice as Willi.
“Destroy the CCTV,” Zachary said.
“And provide them hospitality,” he said and I guessed that it was for his man who was hurt saving me.
I felt myself being kept inside the car. The cold leather seats made me squirm and I felt his arms encircling around my shoulders pulling me next his war
m body.
“What is going on?”
“Why am I leaning against him as if my life depended on him?”
“Why am I not pushing him away?”
“How can I like the warmth of his body when I knew he was a much cold and ruthless man from inside?” I thought and clutched tightly to his hands that encircled me.
“How can I be relieved when I should be running away from him for he was the reason of all this which was happening to me today?”
“Like I have said before,” I heard him speaking for the first time.
I waited for him to complete was what he was saying.
“I leave you for a minute and you end up getting into trouble” he finished and as much I denied that my inner-self agreed with him, which was disturbing.
23
Zachary
I carried her back to the room and made her sit on the bed. I went to the bathroom and got rid of my jacket and kept the mask inside the basin. It had some blood stains on it. Quickly, I turned the tap on and let the water wash away the fresh stains.
It wasn’t mine. I didn’t even have a scratch on my body. I knew he was going to shoot himself. I sighed thinking that if I would have caught him then I would have got much information from him but no worries, I have already captured some of his men and I do have his cell phone with me.
But the thing which kept nagging me was why he attacked Juliette. Well, I knew that she would have a situation like this in the near future, but it’s just too soon. Or was it a warning?
If they wanted to kill Juliette, they could have. Easily.
But they didn’t. Were they really after Juliette or was it just a warning that they can kill her easily?
I kept my hands on my hips and looked up inhaling deeply.
“Why did I get into this?” I thought.
I turned the tap off and kept now clean mask on the side and took the first aid box out from the small compartment near the mirror and went out to Juliette.
She had been a mess. She is not even talking.
“I guess she is traumatized for the second time. No, it’s the third time” I wondered.
“Clean yourself,” I said showing the first aid box before her.
She didn’t even move. Her eyes were fixated on something, nothing in particular and she sat there like a statue not even blinking. But I noticed her trembling hands.
“Juliette!” I called.
“Hey!” I snapped my fingers before her eyes but no movement.
“Do I have to do this too?” I muttered and brought the stool from the dressing table and sat before her opening the first aid box.
I took the cotton and the antiseptic liquid and applied it on the scratch on her forehead. She didn’t even wince.
“Juliette!” I asked in a low voice. She didn’t even move.
“Ok, now I’m worried!” I thought and gradually reached for her hand which was trembling. Her cold hands trembled against mine warm ones and I sighed feeling little guilty that she has to see all this.
“Juliette!” I said again and when she didn’t respond reluctantly I kept her hand on the side and I did which would snap her out.
I slapped her thigh and it worked because she gasped and jerked up in her seat looking at me with her widened eyes.
“What?” she snapped.
“Now that you are awake. Clean yourself!” I said throwing the first aid box on her and she caught it with ease. I stood up from my place and took my jacket.
“Mom will be coming back today. My grandfather is coming with her too” when I said that I looked at her through the mirror to see her looking at nothing in particular. Lost. Again.
“Juliette!” I snapped which made her look at me and she stood up from her seat now attentive.
“Go and get a bath. Eat and sleep. It will be late when Mom will reach here. So you will meet her and grandfather tomorrow. We are having a small welcome party for him tomorrow” I said and she nodded.
“Don’t embarrass me there!” I said which made her glare at me.
As surprising as it sounds but she was the first woman in my life who had the audacity to glare at me with fearing my presence. Well, after mom of course.
“I won’t be coming back today,” I said and took my wallet.
I was heading out for an important business meeting and I had already instructed Max to take care the matter in here. And about Willi. He will always remain under my watch. At first, I thought he was just playing with me making a story telling me that he was against Nicholas in this battle.
But then, he really saved Juliette. He could have easily killed Juliette back there with ease. This is surprising as well as disturbing. A chance of trying to make him look loyal to me is possible. Because Nicholas may have tried to make him look loyal before me by attacking Juliette in public and then Willi saving Juliette. It can be a plan.
I know that the only way to reach Nicholas was Willi. If I had killed Willi that day then I would have never traced that bastard again in my life. So there is only one choice left. Play with them in their own game.
But Juliette had to pay for all this. She is really innocent to be dragged into all this. It would have been very easy if she knew everything in the beginning.
I glanced back at her and walked out of the room when she didn’t say anything.
“Seth” I saw him walking towards me. He bowed a little before speeding my way.
“Make sure to have an eye on Willi. He may be Juliette’s bodyguard but you and Kyle are the real bodyguard of Juliette. And if he tries anything stupid or suspecting, you are free to put him in the cellar. I will handle him after I come back” I said and he nodded understanding.
“And grandpa is coming tomorrow” when I said it, his eyes widened in shock.
The ex-mafia leader was coming back after a decade.
“General?” he asked surprised.
They all called him ‘General’.
“Yes! So prepare for a small welcome party. Remember this, he is no longer involved in this mafia world so don’t talk about anything related to this to him and he isn’t coming here for any business either” I told him and watched as confusion marred his face.
“Then?” he asked.
I sighed and looked up towards the window where Juliette used to stand occasionally.
“He is coming to meet his daughter-in-law,” I said and got inside my car and drove off to my office.
24
Juliette
When I woke up I heard a lot of commotion going on. I sat up on my bed and pushing the quilt aside, I put on my robe and walked towards the door. I saw people walking here and there and some were working on the walls.