Inferno Hearts | Xu Minghao

47. Haunting Memories and Desperate Escapes

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Nabi paused, taking a moment to catch her breath just before she stepped out into the parking lot, a sense of impending danger settling over her like a heavy shroud.

"Nabi, stop!" Minghao's voice rang out loudly, the urgency in his tone matching the palpable tension in the air.

She froze in her tracks at the sound of Minghao's urgent voice echoing through the darkness, his eyes desperately scanning the entrance of the parking lot for any sign of her.

Nabi's heart raced, its rapid cadence far exceeding what should have been normal. The familiar dread of losing her grip on reality, the fear of succumbing to an uncontrollable panic attack, clawed its way back into her thoughts, leaving her with a chilling premonition that another episode was imminent.

Swiftly glancing back, she could already make out the figures of the group rushing toward her, with Minghao leading the charge and the others close behind. Her instincts screamed at her to halt, to resist the urge to run, despite the overwhelming fear she currently harbored for Minghao.

But fear had her in its merciless grip, and there seemed to be no way to break free.

"Nabi, no!" Minghao's scream pierced the night as he witnessed Nabi's desperate attempt to run away, his frustration escalating with every step she took.

As Nabi surged forward in her frantic escape, her body collided with an unyielding force. It was a presence of extraordinary strength that refused to budge, absorbing the full brunt of her desperate momentum without yielding an inch.

Nabi tumbled to the ground, the force of the impact sending a searing jolt of pain rippling through her body.

Minghao and the rest of their group immediately took notice of Nabi's unfortunate collision. Their attention swiftly redirected, and as Minghao's gaze rose to the towering figure standing before them, his eyes widened in profound astonishment.

The figure who had remained motionless began to extend a hand toward Nabi, who lay facing the ground, her brows furrowed in pain, her body still throbbing from the impact.

"Let daddy help you," the man's voice spoke, a voice Nabi recognized instantly among a thousand others.

A surreal sense of detachment from her own body enveloped Nabi. Time itself seemed to freeze as Minghao's voice, once urgent, had vanished into silence, and her vision faded to black. She searched desperately for her own breath but found nothing. In this suspended moment, time appeared to hold its breath, unwilling to move forward.

Trembling uncontrollably, her eyes unresponsive, Nabi slowly lifted her gaze from the ground to the towering figure standing over her.

Then, an sensation washed over her, as if her very soul had been plucked from her body. Her wide eyes fixated on him, and there he stood, just as menacing as the specter of her childhood nightmares. The memories of fear, abuse and vulnerability from her past came flooding back, and an overwhelming sense of dread settled upon her like an old, haunting curse.

The man's sinister smile widened as he savored her reaction, realizing that she had recognized him after years apart. Her frightened expression only seemed to fuel his malevolence. He had waited years for this, to witness the terror in her gaze once again, to relish it. His eyes hungrily roamed over her body, taking in every detail of how she had grown and changed since they last crossed paths.