The twinkling of something on the ground caught my eye. My hand slowly inched towards my back as the guy who currently had me pinned started to lean in. In a flash he was on the ground. I couldn't even be relieved, as I realised a huge man stood towering behind Mr. Lewd's prone figure on the grimy floor.

I remained against the wall as I watched the large stranger begin to pound the blonde man's face in. The night was silent save for the soft squelching sound of the large stranger's fist slamming into the face of the man who'd just tried to sexually assault me. Once Mr. Lewd looked like he was on the precipice of life and death, the stranger finally released him.

The gorgeous stranger I'd crashed into in the train emerged from the darkness behind him, another man who was slightly shorter, flanking his right side. "Charlie, Charlie, Charlie... I knew you were stupid, but I hadn't expected you to be this stupid. I gave your friend very specific instructions so we wouldn't have to do this." His disgust-filled eyes glared down at the man, Charlie, spitting up blood on himself as he groaned on the ground. The gorgeous stranger turned to the larger man. "Remind me to tie up that loose end." He kicked Charlie in his side. "After we deal with this shit stain."

Charlie's swollen eyes widened as they landed on the handsome man's face. "I'm begging you, don't kill me Mr. Petrov. I'll do anything you ask!" He pleaded in a garbled whisper. "Anything! I'm sorry for trying to run, I'm sorry! I'll never try it again, I'll even pay you back double what I owe! Just let me go!"

The large man who'd beat him up scoffed at his request. "Andreas, must we always waste so much time at these type of things?" He asked as he threw a glance at my handsome stranger. "We were meant to be back by now."

Andreas chuckled as he shook his head. "Ah Damien, always in a rush." He teased, his eyes hardening again as they returned to the bloody waste of space on the ground. He waved him away. "Go." He demanded in disgust. Charlie looked utterly grateful as he took his time standing up and limping off, not throwing another glance at me. "Make sure he gets home alright would you, Callum?" The third man simple nodded before heading off after the bloodied man.

It came as no surprise to me when he pulled a gun out of his jacket and put two bullets in the back of Charlie's already bloody head, the sound of shots ringing through the air. The dead body slumped to the ground with a quiet thud, the dark crimson blood staining the gravel.

I took a breath as dark eyes trained on me, looking almost disappointed. "Hey again, Babydoll." He greeted sweetly, taking slow steps towards me, reminiscent of a predator approaching its prey. I met his gaze as he stood before me, close enough for his body heat to radiate against my skin. The cold barrel of his gun pressed against the side of my head.

Surprise flashed in his eyes as I gave him a lopsided grin. "Hey yourself, stranger." I flexed my fingers behind my back.

His eyes searched my face. "Unfortunate that I had to run into you here. Especially with," He gestured with his gun to Charlie's corpse. "There were a lot of things I wanted to do to you, and honestly, this was not one of them. But you understand don't you Babydoll? I can't have you running off to the police. That would be a whole lot of trouble, that I'd have to deal with." He explained, cocking his head to the side.

"No point in promising I wouldn't then?" I mirrored the tilt of his head as I moved forward. He stopped me with pressure from the barrel of his gun on my chest. "Guess not."

He shook his head as he chuckled darkly. "Hate that it doesn't work that way sweetheart, especially, right now." His finger pressed against the trigger just as I threw myself down, the bullet imbedding itself into the brick wall behind me and sending bits of debris into the air.

He aimed again but my leg flew up, kicking the gun right out of his hand. He quickly recovered, throwing me a smirk as I heard the other two men position themselves at my sides, both of them with a gun poised right at me in their respective hands. I narrowed my eyes at Andreas as he retrieved his own gun from the ground, his lips still in an amused grin. The barrel of his gun returned to the center of my forehead. As he was about to pull the trigger, he hesitated for an instant as his gaze darted to the man, Damien.

That provided me with a miniscule window to dart for the the piece of glass I'd spotted on the ground earlier and toss it at Callum. Luckily he hadn't been expecting me to attack so my projectile hit its target straight on.

The force of the throw had the shard slamming hard into his forehead. He reared back, his gun clattering to the ground as the other two men finally sprung into action. I turned and ran for my life, not sparing even a glance behind me to see if I was being pursued. I breathed a sigh of relief as I rounded the corner, the wall providing some kind of barricade from any gunfire, though I was surprised to find that there were none.

I didn't allow myself to stop as I continued to sprint, making my way back the way I had come as I disappeared back into the subway station. I figured it probably wouldn't be very smart to show the people who were trying to kill me where I lived.

I jumped into the awaiting train, narrowly missing it as I slipped past the doors. I remained standing, peering out the windows for any sign of my potential murderers until the world disappeared in the darkness of a tunnel. I grabbed my phone from my backpack and took the SIM card out, slipping it into my jeans pocket.

I noticed my dishevelled reflection as I was returning the device to my bag, recognising the irony of my situation. I now stood in Mr. Lewd's shoes from earlier, that is, before he was nothing but a smeared mess on the floor. I was now the person on the run, on a train, from Andreas Petrov.

***

"Enjoy your stay." The perky desk woman chirped, handing me my room key. "Breakfast is tomorrow at eight." She finished with a smile. I nodded and grinned in return before walking to my room, getting a few bags of junk food and bottles of drinks from a vending machine I found on the way.

Due to the myriad of public transportation options available, I was currently in the outskirts of the city, checked into an inn that looked decent enough that it didn't make my skin crawl but was still small and secluded enough to avoid as many people as possible.

That was probably the best thing I could do for now, not needing to provide extra sources for Andreas to use in case he was looking for me, which I'm pretty sure he was. To put a bullet through my head.

I found my room easily, making sure I secured all the bolts and locks behind me. I washed my set of underwear and threw it onto the heater to dry, not keen on wearing dirty underwear no matter my situation, before I went into the bathroom and took a long, hot shower.

***

I sighed as I slipped into the t-shirt I'd gotten earlier. I grabbed my panties from the heater, ignoring the fact that they were still a little damp, and pulled them on. I climbed into bed and switched the television set on, surfing the limited channels I had until I found one screening 'Enough'. I threw the remote beside me as I watched Jennifer Lopez training onscreen.

***

It was during the climax where J. Lo. and her husband fought to the death that I decided I'd call my father, knowing that if there was anyone I could call about getting information, it would be my dad. I dialled the number quickly on the hotel phone, going straight to my father's private line. He answered after the first ring. "Hello? Who is this?!" He demanded.

"Father, it's me." I mumbled, relieved to hear his voice.

I could tell that he felt the same way. "Princess, where have you been?! I tried to call you earlier but you weren't available. I was barely keeping it from your mother, not to mention Na-"

"Dad," I cut in, "I have to keep this brief. I believe I'm being hunted right now by Andraes Petrov because I saw him off some low life in an alley. I swear, I didn't mean to be there." I explained quickly.

I heard my father sigh. After a moment of silence, he finally spoke. "Where are you?"

"I'm in an inn on the outskirts of the city. I removed my SIM card the moment I got away from him but he probably has more resources to find me." I explained, trying not to let panic overcome me. "I know he's the successor to a business dynasty, but what am I really up against, here?"

"Well, publicly he is best known as the future CEO of Petrov International, one of the most lucrative oil and gas companies in the world. However, what most people don't know is that he will soon also inherit the duties of his father, Ivan as the head of the Petrov family, the largest, Russian mob family on the planet. Needless to say, they have unlimited resources and all types of reach.

Right now, they want to find you and believe me, eventually they will, so first thing tomorrow morning, you need to continue moving. I will send out people to New York right this second. Lay low, stay hidden for now. I will find you." My father's voice held an edge that was rarely ever there.

I nodded, sighing as my situation sunk in. "Alright dad, I promise I will. I love you."

"I love you too."

I couldn't bring myself to hang up. "What if he gets me?"

"You know I'll do whatever it takes to bring you back safe and sound." He reassured, though I could hear that even he himself was not fully convinced.

"I thought we were a no bullshit family, father." I said, appreciating his optimism.

He chuckled despite our situation. "Yes we are, so bullshit aside, your safety is in jeopardy but regardless of what happens, remember that we love you Nicole. We'll see you soon."

"Send the family my love, and please fill them in on the situation, they should know. Bye dad."

"Goodbye Nicole."

I hung up and tried my best to relax, pulling the blanket up to my chin as I settled in my temporary bed. I switched to another channel screening 'The Big Bang Theory' reruns. I watched that until my eyelids became too heavy to keep open, the darkness of slumber providing some solace from the mess that I was currently sitting in.

***

Blinding light. There was too much light to just be coming from the window. I cracked my eyes open, the wide-open room door the first thing I noticed. In the doorway stood the desk woman from last night by the man I had attacked with the glass, Callum. He glared at me from under a bandage that hid the injury on his head.

The woman stared up at him with fear in her eyes. "Did I do well?" She squeaked, shivering in fear as he shoved her aside.

I couldn't help but feel a little sorry for her. She probably didn't ask to be in this mess either. Damien walked into the room with Andreas close behind him, looking as confident as ever in an all black ansemble made up of slacks, boots and a sweater.

Andreas took one look at the quivering desk woman before turning his attention to me, sparing her no second thought.

Damien gave Callum a look. "The intimidation was a bit excessive no?"

Callum's innocent expression was borderline believable. "That doesn't sound like me."

"You draw way too much attention." His companion muttered.

"Ah, that's what keeps these things interesting no? The thrill." Callum mused, tilting his head to stare at Damien's irritated face. I could see that the irritation was real, but there was also an obvious comradery.

Andreas on the other hand, wasn't as easy to read. I grasped the blanket to my chest as his eyes raked over my form. "What do you think boys? Do you think I'd ever get sick of this sight if I woke up to it every single morning?"

I heard Callum snort. "Maybe keep to what you're used to, she bites." He said, haphazardly gesturing to his head.

"Either way, she's coming with us." At my frown, he lifted the hem of his sweater to reveal the handle of his gun. "In case you have any objections."

"W-what about me?" The desk woman squeaked.

Andreas sighed before giving her a cutting look. "Leave."

Callum stopped her with hand on her arm. "And if you're ever tempted to tell anyone about all this, remember what we talked about, yeah?" She nodded her head with obvious fear in her eyes, tripping over her feet in her haste to stumble out of the room.

Callum and Damien made quick work of my belongings, carrying them out to an awaiting car. Andreas held a hand out to help me from the bed, his relaxed posture completely at odds with the reality of my situation. I made the only choice I could, and took his hand.

And that's the next chapter, hope you're all liking it thus far -Roxy :)