Chapter 14
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His words stopped her cold. Natalie froze, her breath catching as her mind raced. ‘What a shameless threat, she thought. But she dared not test whether Jonas was joking or entirely serious.
Pressed against him, her petite figure finally stilled, though the rigidity in her posture betrayed her discomfort.
Jonas, feeling her compliance, relaxed his grip on her tiny waist just a fraction, his large hand loosening enough to allow a hint of freedom but not enough to let go.
Instead, his elegant finger began tapping rhythmically against her side, right where the curve of her waist was most sensitive.
The gentle, teasing motion w maddening, like the soft brush of a feather over exposed nerves. Natalic clutched the edge of the cushion beneath her, her tiers curling tightly as she fought to suppress the shiver building within her. The sensation wasn’t painful–it was utterly eting.
(
Suddenly, the air outside erupte
h two sharp cracks, followed by muffled shouts and curses.
‘Gunfire?‘ Natalie’s heart leapt to her throat. All thoughts of decorum or proximity to Jonas vanished as she turned her head, her wide, worried eyes scanning the direction of the sound. “Shouldn’t we help Ms. Carr?” she asked hurriedly.
Her bambi eyes glistened with unshed tears, the faint sheen making her expression all the more vulnerable, heartbreakingly beautiful.
Any normal person would have been moved to offer comfort, to soften their tone and reassure her. But Jonas wasn’t a
normal
“Oh,” he drawled, his lips curling into a sardonic smirk. “So you’re not here for me, then? You’re willing to play the hero for Myla and take bullets for her instead?”
As his mocking words hung in the air, Natalie felt the grip around her waist loosen slightly. And yet, she didn’t dare move an inch.
Her mind raced with one persistent thought that if she so much as twitched, Jonas might actually follow through on his unspoken threat and toss her out there like a pawn.
She quickly shook her head, her voice flustered. “No, I was just saying… I mean, staying here like this is perfectly fine…”
Her words trailed off as she cast a nervous glance toward the collapsed staircase, where a gaping hole exposed the night sky. The silvery moonlight illuminated the faint outline of Myla’s camo uniform, barely visible against the darkness.
But then that faint sliver of fabric shifted, growing larger. She could tell Myla was sitting up.
Natalie’s heart skipped a beat, her fingers instinctively tightening into a fist. ‘In the middle of a literal gunfight, and she’s getting up?‘
Before Natalie could figure out if she should say something, a sudden burst of rapid gunfire erupted from the floor above. The noises shattered the fragile calm of the night, each shot slicing through the silence with ruthless precision.
Moments later, the distinct clink of shell casings falling through gaps in the ceiling filled the air, the sharp metallic pings bouncing off the concrete floor in rapid succession.
Natalie’s thoughts raced in a chaotic spiral. A heavy machine gun? Why would something like that be upstairs? Who the hell are these people?”
Outside, the faint sounds of shouting broke through the night, chaotic and frantic. Yet as quickly as the voices had risen, they began to fade, growing fainter and more distant until they finally disappeared altogether. The eerie silence that followed felt deafening.
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15:40 FR, 11 ARF GAG
Chapter H
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A few moments passed before Myla reappeared, now sitting on the edge of the broken staircase Without hesitation, she leapt down, landing with practiced ene before striding toward them like nothing out of the ordinary had just happened.
Natalie straightened immediately, her wide eyes scanning Myla from head to toe. Seeing Myla looking unscathed brought her a shaky sense of relief, and Natalie exhaled a small breath she hadn’t realized she was holding
But her anslety returned just as quickly, her gaze darting toward the still–armoldering scene outside. Smoke curled lazily in the air, a grim reminder of the cleans that load just unfolded Will they come back for reinforcements? That’s always how it goes in movies, isn’t it?
She thought nervously, ‘First, they fend off the henchmen, but then their retired–special–forces dads show up. Beat the dads, and here come their mafia grandpas. And if it escalates to rocket launchers? What then?
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AD
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