Invasion

Chapter 16: Attack

Sunday

    The man in front of me was a dark shape, a black silhouette against a midnight blue sky. My heart stopped painfully in my chest as panic exploded in my every cell. He reached out, his hands grabbing my upper arms, fingers biting hard. I tried to wrench myself from his grip, but he was too big, too strong, and footsteps were running up behind me, the other two men, rushing to help the first.
    Hands fell on me, grasping, pulling, tangling in my clothes, ripping at my hair, clenching into my flesh. I fought, desperately, flailing my arms, kicking my legs, throwing my body side to side. I'd escape one hand, just to have it fall in another place, pushing, pulling, tearing at me, trying to subdue me.
    They were talking but most of their words were lost in the rush of blood in my ears and the effort I was putting into struggling. The sounds were sharp and frightening nonetheless, a mixture of anger and triumph, they fed my terror, making me struggle even harder.
    There was a hand on my left wrist. I jerked my arm hard, trying to break free. The man who held it tightened his hold and yanked back. There was a cracking sound and a sudden burst of intense pain shot up my arm. I responded instinctively, pain pushing my fear even higher, making my whole body spasm hard and twist as I tried to get away.
    By this time, the men held me suspended in the air, hands on my arms and legs. I'd screamed when my wrist broke. That and the increase in my struggling must have startled the man who held my left wrist. He let go, a move the man holding my right arm was not prepared for. My upper body broke free, the world spinning as I plunged towards the sidewalk, my head hitting first, pain exploding through me.
    The men were quick, following my body down to the ground, flipping me over, pinning my arms behind me and my legs to the ground. It must have been pathetically easy. My body had gone limp as I drowned in pain. I gasped in sobs, fighting off the darkness that threatened to send me into oblivion.
    "Fuck!" a voice screamed near my ear. "If we hurt him too bad Daewang will kill us!"
    "Shut up," another man hissed. "He's alive. He'll be fine. Call for the car."
    I heard the sound of someone talking on the phone and then there was silence except for my ragged breathing as the men waited for the car. I could feel blood trickling down my face from the wound on my head, dripping onto the sidewalk.
    Too soon, there was the sound of a car approaching, driving at a normal speed and then suddenly accelerating. The driver must have caught sight of us. The car raced to our side and then stopped with the sound of peeling tires.
    Doors opened and the men who were holding me down suddenly let go. The air was suddenly filled with the sound of shouting voices and what could only be fighting. It took me a minute to realize that the car had been full of NamJoon's guards. It was not the car that my attackers had called for.
    Hope began to flare inside of me. I was surrounded by the sound of shoes gritting on pavement, punches being thrown, groans and cries. The guards would save me. I cradled my hurt wrist against my chest and tried to raise up on my other hand, but the movement made my head spin, my stomach lurch sickly and sharp pains flared behind my eyes. I lowered myself back down to the cold concrete with a groan.
    An enormous growl abruptly rent the air, menacing and violent. I recognized it immediately as NamJoon, but my heart still shuddered in my chest. The men who were fighting fell silent, probably frozen in their tracks, and there was only the sound of feet running on the pavement, far faster than any human could possibly move.
    After that...there were brief sounds of crunching bones and flesh being smashed and torn. I knew it was the sound of NamJoon killing my attackers. I closed my eyes and tried not to hear the horrific sounds, the threats he'd made at the school, to kill whoever touched me, replaying in my head.

    Even as NamJoon was dealing with the strange men, someone was kneeling down next to me, carefully turning me over. Another groan escaped my lips. My head and my wrist hurt so fucking bad.
    "Are you alright, Seonbi?" the man asked.
    I gulped and tried to find my voice. "I think my wrist is broken."
    "Show me."
    NamJoon was suddenly crouching next to me, his eyes burning with a fierce light, but his hand was gentle as he carefully took my arm in his fingers. His mouth tight with anger, he took a long look at my wrist and then reached to examine my head before saying, "We're going to a hospital."
    Setting my wrist carefully down on my chest, he picked me up with great care to be slow and gentle, before carrying me over to put me in the backseat of the car. One of the men sat behind the wheel and another in the passenger seat. NamJoon slid in next to me, putting an arm around me to hold me against his side.
    "Drive carefully," he ordered. "Any quick movements will probably hurt him."
    I lay my head against his shoulder and closed my eyes, just trying to deal with the pain.