Amara thought there wasn't anything more frightening than being jobless, but she was too soon to speak.
She was crouched behind one of the wide pillars near the elevator, her hands trembling against the cold surface because just a few feet away, a scene she usually saw in action movies came to life.
Darien was fighting with those mean men. He moved fast, dodging, striking, and twisting.
She ran immediately, like what Darien had asked her to do, but not leaving this place. Her mind didn't seem to remember the whole memo.
You should run away now, idiot.
Oh, but how could she just leave her boss all alone like that?!
Amara peeked from her hiding spot with heavy breathing. She bit down her lip so hard while her hands were busy tapping on her phone.
"9-1-1. Yes, calling for help was what normal people do, not just watching the fighting until it was over.
The line rang for a few seconds. "Come on, pick it up!"
The operator's voice came through. "9-1-1. What's your…"
"Help, please help me," Amara stammered. "There's this group of men attacking my boss. He's all alone and they have weapons with them."
"Ma'am, calm down. Can you tell me where…"
"I-I'm at the Ispire Inc. basement parking level…"
The line went silent, and as she glanced at the screen, it was dead.
"Oh, come on, not now!" She tried to turn it on, but it was no use."You stupid piece of…"
Amara took a deep breath, reminding herself not to waste her energy scolding her phone, which actually needed a new battery or maybe a new phone.
She just hoped that she managed to tell the location before her phone died and the operator would send a dispatcher as fast as possible.
Alright, fine. Next plan. She just had to go upstairs, find the security to get someone down here before Darien ended up on a hospital bed or worse.
But as she turned, her eyes caught something that froze her steps.
One of the men was creeping up behind Darien with this huge metal bat, ready to swing it any second, and Darien seemed not to have noticed him.
Ok, no time to think.
Her brain was like, "No, don't do it." But her legs decided otherwise.
Before she knew it, she'd grabbed the nearest thing from the wall, a rusty mop, and bolted out from behind the pillar.
She charged. Or more accurately, she awkwardly jogged toward the guy and smacked the back of his head with a sound that was… disappointingly soft.
The man didn't even flinch.
Seriously? That mop had one freaking job.
He turned, glaring down at her like she'd just insulted him and his ancestors.
Darien must have seen her because he shouted something, but she couldn't make it out. The man she'd hit walked toward her, with murder intent in his eyes.
She took a shaky step back, holding the mop like a sword. "That was a warning shot. Yo-you shold walk away now."
And of course, he didn't stop after hearing her threat that seemed nothing to him.
The man yanked the mop from her hand, snapped it in half, and tossed it aside like it was nothing.
The next thing Amara knew, his hand reached for her neck, and she gasped for air.
She tried anything to make him let go like clawing at his arm, slapping him, but he wouldn't budge at all. Amara became more panicked as she felt her feet lifted off the ground, her feet kicking helplessly.
"Le-let me…go…" she gasped, but it only made the man tighten his grip.
And then, through the ringing in her ears, she heard him say, "Oh, you've got his scent all over you. Guess that makes you special."
What? What scent? What was that even supposed to mean?
But she didn't have time to let confusion take her over because before she knew it, he threw her so hard to the wall.
The world tilted. Pain crept through her back as he flung her into the wall and crumpled to the floor.
She was just lying there for a moment, thinking that it must be nice to just close her eyes and sleep. Her chest burned and her neck throbbed. She coughed a few times, and the idea was really tempting, but no, she would die for real if she ever did that.
She was about to stand up when the man was already reaching for her again, and he reached out to grab her by the collar, taking her close enough that she could see the bloodshot veins in his eyes.
Oh, please. Not again.
"It's too bad, you know? We can have a little fun, or is this the way you want to have fun? You like it rough, huh?"
Somehting in her snapped.
She jabbed her fingers into his face, right into his googly ugly eyes.
"ARGH! YOU BITCH!"
He stumbled back, clutching his face, and Amara dropped to her knees with one hand pressed to her chest. She tried to crawl away from there before half-running, half-limping, but someone grabbed her arm.
"No! Let me go!"
She jerked away, ready to scream, but a calm voice cut her off. "It's okay. Hey, it's me."
She looked at the man more clearly, and it was Darien.
Oh, her boss.
She never thought she would be so happy to see this face after trying to avoid him. Ironic, really.
She blinked through her tears and sweat and looked at his face. There was no mark, scratch, or injury on that handsome face. His hand cupped her cheek, brushing his thumb under her chin as if checking she was really there.
For a moment, she couldn't hear anything.
Amara didn't know why the touch hit her so hard. There was relief, fear, sadness, joy, anything mixed into this ugly pile-up of emotion.
"They hurt you."
That wasn't a question.
His gaze shifted over her shoulder, and that softness evaporated as fast as it came.
Amara looked back too, and her body tensed as the man who attacked her earlier was coming again, roaring like some wounded animal.
She looked back at Darien as his right shoulders straightened, and like that night, scales slowly covered his shoulder down to his arm. When the man lunged, his hands, no, claws, closing around the man's throat. The sound that followed was… well… something that usually only existed in the movies.
"You shouldn't have touched what's mine. Bet you regret not staying like a good boy in your hole."
His? Her?
Before she could process it, his other hand, yes, the normal one, came up gently covering her eyes.
She then felt something warm splatter against her arm. She smelled coppery.
Amara squeezed her eyes shut, her body trembling as the silence followed.
When his hand finally moved, she saw the man nowhere, only a pool of blood that now started to flow to where she was standing. Her legs were about to give out but Darien caught her. "Easy, there. I've got you."
She should have protested when Darien lifted her and carried her bridal-style, but her head found his shoulder somehow comfortable, so she stayed there.
As they walked, Amara realized how those men were scattered across the floor. Hopefully, just faint or something.
Her head leaned against his chest, half-conscious, but she could feel the low rumble of his heartbeat.
It wasn't erratic like hers. Pretty steady for someone who had just fought a gang.
"Let's go home, Amara."