Alek

Chapter 13: Mae Kazimi

Chapter 13: Mae Kazimi

As my knees hit the floor, the two bottles from my hands drop to the floor and shatter. The liquid pours onto the floor and I move my hand out of the way just in time.

I can feel the second hit coming before it touches me and I move away. As I slowly get to my feet, my eyes make contact with a man, his face wrinkled with years of dirty work and his small prudy eyes are locked onto my face, mouth cocked in a snarl.

But you see, there's only one issue.

He's huge.

I pull out my knives and take a deep breath.

"You're going to die tonight," I say calmly. "Any last words?"

The man attacks me like an animal, jumping towards me with both hands and I jump away onto a crate with both feet, praying I've cracked nothing inside the boxes. As he reaches for me once more, I jump down, rolling and slicing low. Blood gushes from the man's calf but he does not let out a single sound.

I don't have time to be surprised because he kicks out with his feet, hitting me straight in the ankles. I hardly have time to register the pain before he's moving again at great speed.

I try to find his fighting technique or open ends as Hale has taught me, but there's nothing. There's no pattern he fights with and all I can do is avoid his hits.

This is not how Shadow fights.

I pull out my gun, cock it and point it straight at his head, "Who do you work with?"

The man stares at me dumbly and for a second I think he has no idea what I'm saying. That moment of hesitation costs me everything.

The man jumps on me, my gun flying right out of my hands. He weighs a million tons and his large body squashes mine and I can't breathe. I try to let out a loud shout, but his hands clamp onto my mouth and his horrid breath fans my face.

"Dumb bitch," he growls, spit flying from his mouth.

I want to throw up.

He pulls my hair and I try to kick with my feet. But I can't move and his weight is crushing me.

I reach towards the crate closest to me, fingers reaching for anything as his hands wrap around my throat. My fingers scrape against the inside of the box, wriggling around desperately for anything, anything.

Please, I'm screaming inside my mind. Please.

I know I don't deserve to live, but guess what? I don't give a shit.

My fingers make contact with a small bottle of Botox and I grab it with everything I have inside of me. And then, I bring it up and shove it into the man's open mouth and watch as he chokes on the small bottle. His hands fly off my throat and his body rolls off of mine. I get to my knees, pulling my knife out of my boot as he grabs his throat, choking and coughing, desperately clawing at his neck as he lays on his back.

Idiot.

I raise my hand and bring the blade down onto the man's throat. Blood sprays everywhere, including my face but I don't care. I stab him over and over, a scream ripping out of me.

"Ayo!"

It's Rashid.

I look up, eyes slowly taking in my mess. There's blood everywhere, and I'm soaked in it. I can feel my neck burning and my eyes stinging with....tears?

"Mae," Rashid chokes, stepping towards me. "Mae."

"He....he almost killed me," I whisper, staring at the man's vacant open eyes.