“Ugh, you guys know if the paparazzi recognized me, then I will have another massive headache,” I muttered. I knew they ignored me again. I’ve been constantly making excuses for not going to Shimmers, but these ladies didn’t buzz. 

“We solved the paparazzi problem. We took care of your outfit. Why must you be so negative all the time?!” Emma groaned at me, frustrated when we stepped out of Olivia’s car as they did not want to take mine by saying, “it will drag attention.”

“She is right. Look at you! I bet Zearo wouldn’t even recognize you after the change.” Mia mused along with Olivia and Emma. They changed their attire and demanded me to do a touch-up as my dress was a go-to for the club, according to them. 

My hair lazily falls back. They did my makeup that ended up with thick eyeliner and a deep brown shade of lipstick. My eyes looked more bluish after Emma put a brownish eyeliner on my bottom eyelid. They threw my overcoat off and gave me a black boot to accompany the jeans. I cursed under my breath at myself, as wearing jeans felt like a bad idea. 

They overdid on me, as I couldn’t even recognize myself. I wanted to scream at them, but watching Mia’s smiling face, I couldn’t. Aria was dumbstruck examining my attire and to her surprise, Mia dragged her as well to the club. She wore a red pencil skirt ending up mid-thigh and a black shirt, which was an okay sign by the ladies. They did her makeup and let her go, unlike me. 

Walking past the crowd, Emma and Mia pushed the people aside, making their way towards the entrance. The bouncers eyed us carefully and stamped our wrists. I could never understand their rules. 

“Oh, stop with that grumpy expression alright! Look at your husband over there! Man, he is a sight for a sore eye.” Emma chimed, pointing at the top corner of the dance stage. I plopped on the only vacant loveseat, and so did Olivia and Aria. Mia and Emma strode past the crowd to get a little boozed up. That’s what they said. 

“Liara, it’s okay to let yourself free. You are not here because of him, but because your best friend is going to start a new life. Enjoy it with her as long as she is with you.” Olivia patted my back and walked towards the dance floor. 

I sighed, rubbing my eyes, making sure not to smudge the makeup. The headaches I had yesterday were terrible. I’d be damned if I do that again. “Madam, I - “Aria whispered, which was hardly audible to me. I looked at Zearo, who stood unfazed by my presence with his eyes closed. 

“Aria, this is a public place. Do what you’d like. I’m not your boss here.” I tried assuring my workaholic assistant. She needed to live a little as well. I smiled at her, assuring them that I was fine alone. When she saw Mia and Emma walking toward me, she excused herself. 

“I never knew that this club is so good!” Emma said, gulping down the yellowish liquid, and Mia did the same. “You want to drink something?” Mia inquired, and I shook my head. 

“I will get myself a juice,” I said and saw Emma snicker. Glaring at her, I made my way toward the bartender. I saw the same guy I met the first day I stepped foot here. “Can I get a glass of orange juice?” I inquired, not sure if they keep the juice. He stared at me for a minute, making me uncomfortable under his gaze. 

I cleared my throat and raised my eyebrows at him. He shook his head and handed me a glass of orange juice. “Want me to add some liquor to it?” He questioned, but I shook my head. Walking past the sweaty people, I tried to find an empty seat. But to my surprise, pairs devoured each other with their saliva as they occupied all the seats. I cringed at the sight and held my glass tighter, careful not to spill it anywhere. 

The club itself boomed with the music as the teens danced crazily, swaying their bodies along with the music. I could feel my body humming around with the song, but I stopped by taking a big gulp of my juice. Prying my eyes at the crowd, I searched for any of my ladies, but it was like they all vanished from here, leaving me all alone. 

“Oh, shit!” Taking a step back, I glared at the person who knocked me over that led to the entire juice falling on my t-shirt.

“Sorry, not sorry.” She said, her face half-hidden, but how’d I even forget this redhead who injured my Dima? “Samira” unknowingly her name rolled down my tongue. Bitter memories of the day my Dima and Mia got kidnapped flashed in front of me. 

“Oh my my, you remember my name? I should be grateful.” She said, not backing away or leaving me alone. I knew talking to her would attract problems. Mia would be traumatized when she’d seen this evil woman.

“Leave me alone,” I said through gritted teeth. My hand gripped the empty glass tighter every second. I could feel my blood boiling inside my body. Not bothering to create a scene, I walked away from her, away from the crowd, away from the woman who hurt my people. 

Searching for the washroom, I stepped towards the sign that showed the lady’s restroom beside the pantry near the emergency exit. Pulling my t-shirt away from sticking to my skin, I entered the restroom that had four more doors inside it. Before washing away, I knew it would not be safe here anymore and texted all my ladies except Mia to take her away from the club as soon as possible. I sent another text to Anthony asking him to pick me up from here as soon as possible. 

“You crazy bitch!” someone yelled behind me and I hastily turned around, the impact causing my feet to fumble on the wet floor. Gripping the nearby washbasin, I looked at Samira, whose eyes threw daggers at me. My heart thumped louder every second, anticipating if she harmed my friends outside. I stood straight, balancing my body, and looked at her. 

“You have gone mad or something? What’s your problem?” I was genuinely curious about what exactly was her problem? Her red hair curls bounced with every step she took. Bloody red lipstick and dark makeup with only one tiny piece of cloth barely covering the parts. Her body was perfectly shaped and a serpent tattoo was between her boobs. 

“You are my problem.” It snapped me back to reality when I felt her nails digging into my shoulder when she gripped my hand. My T-shirt was half wet, making me shiver now and then. “Leave me,” I said as calmly as I could. I knew she was powerful and perhaps good at scaring people off. I needed to act smart and I wouldn’t let her hurt me. Not again. I made a mental note to toughen up and fight against evil. 

“I will not.” She said, clutching my hand tighter than before. I winced when the pain shot up and I felt her finger ring slicing through the skin. Taking a deep breath, I realized I had to fight her off to make sure my people were safe. I closed my eyes, calming my racing heart and remembering all the techniques Anthony taught me how to protect myself. 

“Look at you! I never looked at you closely, but now when I did, I understood why Zearo chose you.” Her voice felt like a needle when her other hand pulled my hair. I slowly opened my eyes and looked her in the eyes, making sure to not waiver the eye contact. I fisted my free hand and forcefully drew it towards her stomach. 

To my surprise, she caught it right before it could hit her and bent my hand, turning my body away from hers. She held my hands and stood behind me. Her hold was unbearably painful.

“You barbie dolls think that by learning a few combats will compete with us? We deal with fighters unlike you.” She whispered in my ears. Does no one use the washroom? Why don’t I see anyone coming? I thought and cursed under my breath. “What have I ever done to you?!” I never got an answer to this damn question. This woman was so hell-bent on hurting me and I stood unaware of what exactly made her hate me.

Pulling my hair back, she dragged my head towards her face. I furrowed my brows because of immense pain but did not flatter. “You took Alfredo away from me. I survived it knowing him well that he’d get bored with you and come back to me. But this time, you hurt my sister! She loved him and you snatched him away from her.!” Her voice, getting louder than before. Alfredo, she meant Zearo. But when did I take him away from whom?! 

“Who are you talking about?!” I was furious. She continued pressing her nails against my skin and I, for the life of me, did not know what she was talking about. She could have him for all I cared.

“Julie.” She spat at me, and that drove the border limit of my resistance. I stomped her feet so hard as she did not expect my move. When her grip loosened, I turned around quick enough to land a hard punch on her face. She was a minute late to expect my move, giving me time to pull another one. I knew if I wasted even a second then she’d catch up with me. 

Grabbing the nearby stool, I threw it on her. Surprisingly, she shielded it with her arm but did not expect me to kick her from her back. My heels dug a little deeper into her thigh as I turned towards her back and kicked her on her exposed thigh. She got on her knees but turned around to face me. I somehow slapped her hard as soon as she turned her face towards me. 

Breathlessly, I ran out of the washroom and locked it from the outside. To my surprise, I was just a second early to lock the room, as I felt the doorknob wiggling as soon as I locked it. Wobbling on my feet, I took in the club. People danced like crazy without caring for the world. I wished I could be that careless. I knew I had to find Anthony and my friends, as I couldn’t believe Zearo. I pried closer to where he was standing. He closed his eyes and swayed with the music, unaware of his people torturing me.

Clutching the injured hand, I felt immense pain surging through my body, but I had to get out of here. Checking my phone, I saw a few messages from my friends letting me know they were safe at home but did not receive any message from Anthony. Relieved that Mia and others were safe, I glanced at the emergency exit and walked towards it as fast as I could. 

I dialed Anthony’s number, and he answered on the first ring itself. “I’m just about to reach. Stay put.” I informed him where I would be and walked as fast as I could towards the emergency exit and out of the door. 

When the chilly breeze touched my injured skin, I winced at the immense pain I felt. Licking my dry lips, I tasted something metallic. Touching my lips, I knew it was blood. Groaning, I wobbled a few steps, searching for some human to give me company. But alas, it felt like I entered a wholly new environment. I could only hear the swooshing of wind and the pitter-patter of raindrops. “Great!” I sarcastically said, judging by my condition. 

Not comfortable standing near the door, I walked away from Shimmer’s Night. Knowing very well that I’d get drenched as the thunderstorms grew louder and louder. Each drop of water got colder and colder. Winter’s rainfall was never a good idea to get drenched on. I shook my head as my hair stuck to my face. Pain on my back increased and I felt the wounds burning when the water touched it.

“There she is!” I heard her voice loud and clear. Sucking in a deep breath, I started running away from the voice, but suddenly felt a jolt of pain below my abdomen. My legs turned into jelly and I couldn’t even control my body anymore. I felt my senses slipping away, but I knew they’d kill me if I fell right now. 

Touching the area where I felt immense pain, I found a knife hanging out of my skin. I turned towards the source and saw Samira, along with two men, close to me. Circling me like a predator, she laughed at my condition. Sucking in a deep breath repeatedly, I removed the knife away from my body earned another whimper from my lips. She stopped moving and the two men charged at me together. 

I did not have time to think about pain or plan. Anger took over my rational thinking, and I dodged the first blow coming toward me and stabbed the second guy, who didn’t expect me to attack him on his legs. “Bitch!” The first guy roared. I turned swiftly and sliced his arm, and kicked the second guy where I stabbed him first. 

I felt my senses weakening, but I couldn’t let them win. Clutching the knife in my fist, I punctured the first guy in multiple places on his body. I couldn’t even fathom how many times the knife dig deeper into his body. I couldn’t see anything as the rain didn’t slow down a bit. 

“Crazy woman! You are going to kill him.!” I heard another male voice. Not bothering to look at the first guy, I turned towards the second one who yelled at me, but unfortunately, I was late as I felt another powerful jolt of pain on my left arm. The knife slipped away from my grip and I stumbled down. I felt a heavy punch on my rib cage, but couldn’t feel the pain. My body felt numb. 

Searching for the knife, I found a stone. “This would do,” I murmured and swiftly turned around and jammed the stone on his head. Slowly getting up to my feet, I saw both the men lying lazily on the ground. I blinked a few times and looked at the red hair. 

That was all it took for me to go crazy. I remembered how she hurt my family. Picking up the knife from the ground, I gripped it and walked toward her. Unfazed, she brought her knife which looked like a snake towards my neck. 

She may be a powerful fighter, but I was an angry wolf at the moment. I took my time and let her come closer to me. As soon as her hands reached my neck, I sliced her hand that held her snake-shaped knife. I did not kill her, but one after the other, I marked her beautiful face that matched her hair right now. She caught my injured waist, and I wheeze at the immense pain. 

I knew that someone stood behind me, but I had to take care of her before I entered nothingness. Her grip did not loosen, and I sucked in a deep breath. My boots were the only sharp object in my entire body, and I knew my kick back in the bathroom was harsh. I kicked her where I kicked earlier. It was enough for her to step back. I snatched the snake-shaped knife and shoved it on her thigh, careful not to kill her. 

I felt my body getting numb as I struggled to breathe. My body soon fell to the ground, splashing water on my face. I saw a figure rushing towards me. Mustering a weak smile, I whispered, “Anthony, please don’t notify Dima or anyone about this. I love you all.” Coughing severely, I closed my eyes, as I couldn’t feel my body anymore. I could only hear sirens through my ears and faint voices in the background.

**†****†*****†*****†******†*****†***

Hello reader, I hope you guys are safe and are enjoying this book so far. I would like to know your views regarding the story and the storyline. ❤❤❤

❤Vote, Comment and Share❤