Mr. Lawson's Assistant

Chapter 28

Once we were inside, I headed to my room to change out of my wet suit. Slipping on a comfy sports bra, a large t-shirt and shorts, I sent a text to my mom and David, letting them know I was alright. The texts were really only so that they didn't ask questions. I told myself that if I were on a regular vacation I would text them like I was now. Just as i started to leave my room, my phone lit up and I glanced down to see Soma's name light up my screen.
'Hey, I heard you're on paid vacation?' It read.
'Yeah, my boss pays a two week trip for his employees of the month.'
'Awesome! Anyways, I wanted to let you know that I'm heading home, but I decided to stop at my cousin's house in Fayville on the way home...'
I smiled and shook my head. I wondered if Soma was ever actually going to make it home.
'That's fine! I'll see you soon.'
When I was finished, I met Damon in the kitchen for lunch. Once in the kitchen, I saw that Damon had already made two sandwiches, and both were sitting on the table with a glass of water.
"How do you always beat me in here?" I muttered, taking a seat, as he set down his glass of water.
"I only had to change my pants." He smirked and I sighed, bowing my head to say a quick prayer.
When I opened my eyes and picked up my sandwich, I felt Damon's eyes on me, and I glanced up to him across the table.
"What?" I asked him, raising an eyebrow, as I bit into my sandwich.
"Nothing." He shook his head, but his eyes were still on mine. Turning my attention back to my food, I was almost finished with my sandwich, when the doorbell rang. Raising my eyebrows, I glanced up at Damon, and he frowned. Standing up, he made his way down the stairs to the main entrance, where I heard him open the door.
"Sara?" I heard Damon's voice from dowstairs. That name sounded familiar.
The woman at the party!
Damon had told me her name, but I'd never met her.
What the heck is she doing here? Do all his friends just simultaneously show up at their beach houses on the same week?
I cleared mine and Damon's plates from the table, listening to the two conversing, but not bothering to pay attention to what they were saying, until I passed by the stairs on the way to my room, and I heard her voice. It was a familiar, smooth, tinkling sound, and when she laughed, I stopped mid-stride.
Slowly, I walked over to the small overlook that viewed the front door, and I searched for the blonde woman. Sadly, Damon was too tall for me to see her face, and confirm my suspicions. But then, as if reading my mind, Damon stepped to the side, inviting the woman inside, and I immediately recognized her face.
The woman from the jewlry store?
They were the same woman? Why did she lie to me about her name?
Maybe she has a twin sister...?
Yeah right.
All I had time to do was step back from the railing a few steps so they didn't catch me spying. "Sara's" face appeared first, and when she saw me, her sweet expression momentarily lapsed into shock.
I narrowed my eyes at her, and crossed my arms, after I brushed my hair back off my shoulders. She quickly changed her expression back to sweet and innocent and Damon came up the stairs at that moment.
"Oana," Damon started, ushering to the blonde woman, "this is Sara. I never had the chance to introduce you two at the party." He gestured between us. For Damon's sake, I was sure, "Sara" smiled forcibly at me. I stepped forward, a firm expression on my face as I shook her hand. I met her eyes, and she searched my face for an indication of what I was thinking, but I was smart enough to keep my thoughts to myself.
"Nice to meet you." She said quietly.
I didn't even bother smiling. "I feel like we've already met somewhere..." I frowned slightly, and her face tightened with a small dose of panic.
"I-I don't think so-" she stopped short seeing the look I gave her.
"It's nice to meet you too." I pulled my hand back, and crossed my arms.
Damon observed the interaction with raised eyebrows, and when I drew back, his eyes were on me instantly.
I didn't look him in the eyes, because I wasn't sure what exactly was going on myself, and I didn't want to try to explain it to him right now.
What I wanted to know was why the woman hadn't told me her real name, and why she looked so surprised to see me? She already knew I was staying with Damon.
"I had no idea you still had a guest Damon." Sara turned to Damon innocently. He searched her face momentarily, trying to gauge what was happening. He was as lost as I was.
"Yes, we're leaving on Monday." He told her, gesturing to the living room.
"Oh, no I can't stay long I just-" Sara was cut off by the sound of a loud crash, and suddenly, footsteps were sounding up the stairs. I whirled towards the steps, in time to see three Spanish men rushing up the stairs towards us.
Damon yelled something at me, and I turned to start running towards the kitchen. Spinning around, I stared wide-eyed as the men trampled up the steps. The blonde woman hadn't even flinched.
Sara crossed her arms over her chest and her sweet expression faded. "What did you do?" Damon yelled over the noise, his eyes flashing, as he looked to Sara.
Her eyes were hard, but she shrugged, and took a step away from Damon, as he pulled out a gun from his pocket. As he fumbled for bullets, I rushed towards the kitchen, grabbing our glasses out of the sink. I waited for a split second, before the first man appeared at the top of the steps. Chucking the glass as hard as I could, I grimaced when it shattered upon impact with his head.
Then, as the second man appeared, I chucked the other glass, but he ducked and it slammed into the window behind him. The man's eyes locked on mine, and he lunged off the stairs towards me. I screamed, and dashed towards the hallway, barely getting out from behind the island, before his hand was around my neck, jerking me backwards. Gunshots echoed in the kitchen, as my head slammed into the hard tile. I felt rough hands yanking me up from the floor, but as soon as I was half way up, more gunshots rang out, and I slammed back into the floor. Crying out, I grit my teeth together, and tried to open my eyes, but my head felt like it was splitting open, and I couldn't do it.
"Put the gun down, Damon!" Sara's high-pitched voice cried out, and Damon's angry voice followed.
"What are you doing?" He growled, and something crashed to the floor. I couldn't look up.
"I'm keeping you alive!"
"By telling your father where I'm at?" Damon roared, and she let out a sarcastic laugh.
"They don't want you Damon, they want her-"
That's all I heard, before my head spun and the pounding in my ears took over. When I came back to, everything was quiet.
"Oh God, Oana wake up-" Footsteps vibrated on the floor, and I tried to peel my eyes open.
It hurt, but I could do it this time.
My vision cleared enough to see Damon shoving a man's body away from me, and kneeling at my side.
"What's happening-" I fumbled, and he shook his head.
"It's all over. Lay still I'm taking you to the hospital." He ordered quietly, and slid his hands underneath me, as he gently lifted me up into his arms.
"Why does this keep happening?" I murmured.
Damon's jaw twitched. "What's that?" He asked, slowly decending the stairs. I winced, but bit my lip to keep from whining. "You're always with me when I'm injured." I finally answered, as we reached the bottom of the steps. His eyes momentarily switched down to me, and they flared when he saw my face crinkle in pain as he jerked me slightly to open the front door.
"It's not going to happen again." Determination and anger flashed across his face when he spoke, and I could hear the glass of my broken cup crunching under his feet.
I closed my eyes. "Look, I'm fine, you don't have to take me to the hospital." I said after a moment, and his mouth twitched, as he carried me down to the car.
He acted like I weighed nothing.
"You have a concussion. I'm taking you to the hospital." He said firmly, stopping outside the car, then, I thought I heard him curse under his breath.
"You left the keys inside, didn't you?" I smiled a little, and he glanced down at me, saying nothing. I let out a small laugh, and shook my head. "Put me down, I'm fine. I have a minor concussion, which means that going to the hospital is pointless." I argued, and to prove my point, I started to move against his arms. Instinctively, Damon gripped my thighs to still me. That made me pause and glance up at him. He met my eyes, but only loosened his hold slightly.
"We're going to the hospital." He stated, but I pursed my lips.
"No, we're not. We have bigger problems." I shook my head, holding back a grimace, as I squirmed against his hold. He sent me a look, telling me to stop moving, but just to irk him, I wriggled some more.
"You're injured-" he started, and I scoffed.
"You have three dead men in your house right now, Damon. And the woman who brought them is gone. I think that's a bigger deal than my concussion." I crossed my arms, and Damon's eyes hardened. "What?" I frowned, confused as to why he was looking at me like that.
He shook his head, and started slowly lowering me to the ground.
When I was on my feet, I let out a breath and blinked to clear my vision, shielding my face from the evening sun.
Damon turned away from me for a moment, and pulled out his phone. I heard him conversing with someone in a low tone, but I couldn't understand what he was saying. Honestly, it was hard enough for me to stay on my feet. Of course, I couldn't admit it out loud.
After Damon was finished on the phone, he turned to me and paused, before he spoke. "We're going to stay at Grant's until this is over. I'm sure you want some clothes for tonight and tomorrow?" He asked me. I nodded, and started shuffling forward towards the front door. Damon let me go in front of him, but I couldn't move very quickly and by the time we reached the door, he stepped in front of me to open it. I started up the steps, but when I came to the top, I stopped at the sight of the three men laying on the floor. Biting back the sympathetic noise that rose in my throat, I inhaled, and started to move forward.
Suddenly, the man whom I had hit with the glass raised his hand, and I yelped in surprise, stumbling backwards. Gasping, I covered my mouth, and Damon finished the rest of the remaining stairs in seconds. I hadn't killed him!
Thank God! I'm not a murderer!
Pressing myself back against the railing when the man groaned and his head moved, I looked to Damon with wide eyes.