The Cursed Shell

20

Krystene was still screaming. Her cheeks were wet in tears.

The assassin was chuckling while driving his Benz. 'Cry, cry,' he thought, 'no-one's gonna hear you.'

He opened the window beside him and threw the phone out which was later crushed by the tyres of his car. He never leaves any trail behind.

"I'm not able to trace the phone," Dhawan crossed his eye–brows while typing something on the computer key–board.

"He must have crushed the phone till now", Lamb declared.

Suddenly, Lamb's phone beeped as it received a whatsapp voice call. Lamb picked it up. "Hello? Josh? Have you reached India?"

"Yes Dad," Josh's voice came from the phone. "I'm going towards the orphanage."

"No need for that," Lamb said. "The adolescent is with the killer who is driving her inside a forest."

"Which forest?" Josh asked.

Lamb turned back at Brute.

"No idea", Brute shook his head.

"Mew....mew mow!" Crunchy said.

Dhawan translated his words in his mind. He translated Crunchy's words to Brute. "The killer mustn't be far from your orphanage. Is there any forest near your orphanage?"

"Yes", Brute nodded.

Dhawan exhaled in relief and motioned to Lamb to tell that to Josh.

"Josh," Lamb spoke in his phone, "there's a forest near the orphanage. Search for a brown bearded bald man with massive shoulders in the forest."

"Search for Krystene too", Brute added.

"Okay Dad," Josh said. "I'll follow the way you told."

The line went dead.

Dhawan looked down at his sibling cat and smiled. "Well done, Crunchy. I'll give you dog–food as a reward!"

Crunchy rolled his eyes.

"Stop crying and come out," the assassin pulled Krystene out of the car. "No one's gonna hear you."

Krystene was bitterly weeping. Her squeals were echoing in the forest, but were only audible to birds, insects, and the assassin.

"Kneel", the assassin forced her to kneel down. He was ordered by his American appointer to kill the girl at a place where she could never be found. Stephenson had planned to kill the girl and burry her corpse a few feet below the ground. He had brought a few digging instruments for that.

The assassin pointed the pistol towards her forehead.

"Wait," Krystene said, trying to control her tears unsuccessfully. "I want to see my best friend's picture for the last time. I've her photo in my pocket."

The assassin laughed. "Do that quickly. I also have other things to do."

He showed a little pettiness on the girl and let her reach her pocket for a photograph.

Krystene pushed her hand inside the pocket of her denim. She touched the object she wanted. She knew what to do next. She also knew that she had to do it very quickly. Her hand was shivering. She was in a situation which is rarely faced by anyone in lifetime. Do–or–die. Now–or–never.

She took a long breath and pulled the cylindrical pen–sized object out of her pocket. She jumped to stand on her foot. She outstretched her hand and was just to spray the pepper–spray right on the assassin's eyes when Stephenson gripped her wrist tightly so that she couldn't move it.

"Did you really think you could fool an assassin?" Stephenson chuckled.

"Yes," Krystene said, "I still do. You've gripped my wrist, not my fingers. I still can move them." She pressed the pepper spray with her index finger, right on his eyes.

"Aaagh!" the assassin cried in pain and pressed his eyes with his fingers. He had never faced such pain in his lifetime. In fact, he had never expected a pepper–spray to hurt him like this. He kept rubbing his eyes. His eyes had become red with dark nerves bulging out. He couldn't see anything. He couldn't keep his eye–lids open. He couldn't stop pressing his eyes with his fingers. He couldn't do anything, but scream in pain.

Krystene's intelligence saved her for the moment. Still, she wasn't completely out of danger yet. She knew what she had to do now. Run!

She started bolting away from the killer. She didn't know where she was going. She just knew that wherever she goes would be a safer than being with the killer. She was afraid if the killer was following her. She wished she hadn't started running so fast. The killer must've located the direction she was running by hearing her footsteps on the dried leaves and woods. She changed her direction to ninety degrees right. She was in her greatest speed ever. She was panting. Her legs were working as springs which let her run even after she was exhausted. Her heart was pounding heavily. She felt herself being heavier and heavier for her legs with each passing second. She wasn't able to think anything. She just knew one thing. She had to run and nothing.

She stopped and panted heavily. She stood with the support of a tree beside her. She could feel her chest heavy. She tried to slow down her panting as if she breathes loudly, it could be heard by the killer.

She stepped aside the tree and looked straight. She widened her eyes in horror as she saw the killer almost ten metres away from her, rubbing his eyes. He hadn't seen her as his eyes were closed. He was standing straight and had no plans to follow his target at the moment.

'God help me,' Krystene thought. 'I'm trapped!'

She stepped back in slow motion. She stepped on a wood which cracked.

The assassin opened his eyes when he heard something cracking. His eyes were still badly bulged and red. He saw his target standing in front of him.

"Hey!" he snapped, rubbing his eyes and panting in pain. "Stop there!"

Krystene didn't wait to think and started running in the opposite direction.

Stephenson the assassin pulled his pistol out and shot blindly. He started running towards the direction his target ran.

Krystene again stopped after a panting run. She heard heavy footsteps, but couldn't locate its direction. She stood silently and tried to hear the footsteps on woods and dried leaves. Soon she located that the sound was coming from her back. She again started running.

She was running blindly in any direction. She couldn't locate where she was stepping. She didn't care. What she knew was that she had to run. Run faster than ever. Even if her legs get fractured or sprained or worse, she didn't have to care as she just had to run! Run anywhere. She wasn't even looking at the way she was running. The situation was run–or–rest forever. She didn't stop. She didn't look anywhere. She was just racing through the woods. She had never been so fast. But this time, it was the question of her life. She didn't know how far she had run yet. She didn't know whether the killer was following her or not. She just knew that she had to run.

'Is he still following me?' she thought, still running. 'Should I stop and check? No. I need not to stop. Run–or–rest forever.'

She didn't stop until a massive hand punched on her face. She slipped and fell down. Her nose was bleeding, but she couldn't feel any pain as a worse fear was standing in front of her. The killer was standing in front of her.

'The time has come', the killer thought, still rubbing his eyes in pain.

He raised a pistol towards her forehead. "We've played much of this game. Now it's time to rest."

Krystene's eyes widened in horror as the killer motioned his finger on the trigger of the pistol. She knew what would happen next.