A Duet of the Soul

Chapter 40: A Failed Attempt

*Maria's POV*

A flash of lightning lit up the kitchen for a brief moment, but that was all it took to notice the outline by the back door. A man, dressed all in black, stood patiently waiting for me to walk into the kitchen. I froze like a deer in headlights, not sure whether to scream, run, or try to fight this intruder myself.

He raised an arm in my direction, when another flash of lightning revealed the weapon in his outstretched hand. I bolted back down the hall as a bullet whizzed by my head, lodging itself in the wood of the doorframe I was just standing in. The sound of heavy footsteps followed close behind me as I ran down the hallway. I screamed for help, rushing back into the living room, but neither Sean nor Ryan were there.

A large thud echoed from behind me, and I turned to see Ryan pinning the intruder down while Sean stomped on the intruder's hand and wrestled the gun away from him. I heard the man's painful cry as his fingers were crushed under Sean's weight and the gun was securely away from him. My knees gave out, and I collapsed onto the floor in relief, a shaking and crying mess.

It was Adam, I was sure of it. 

Somehow, he knew Justin was gone, and I would be an easy target. He had broken into the house, chased me, tried to finish me off. But they had stopped him. Justin's brothers actually caught him and stopped him. We could finally be free from this horrific nightmare.

Ryan tied the intruder's hands behind his back with zip ties, still leaning the majority of his body weight on top of him, as Sean ripped off his mask. The intruder's head spun in my direction glaring furiously at me. My stomach plummeted to see a stranger's face, not that of Adam's.

The stranger was yanked backwards onto his feet and drug to the basement door under the stairs. Sean yanked the door open, grabbed the man's arm, and drug him into the darkness below. I wanted to vomit but forced the bile back down my throat. Ryan left to check the rest of the windows and doors on the main floor to make sure everything was properly locked.

Ryan eventually returned and knelt in front of me, wrapping his arms around me in a comforting hug. "Shh, hey, it's alright, calm down, Maria."

I shook my head violently, slightly pushing against his chest. "It's not Adam. I don't know who that is. Why is he here? Where is Adam? Is he waiting outside too? God, he's going to come in at any minute, you know he is!"

In response to my breakdown, Ryan pulled me tightly against him. I gave in and embraced him, weeping into his shoulder. The range of emotions from the past few minutes was more than I could handle.

"I... I... I thought..." I sobbed as he rubbed my back.

"Hey, it's okay. We're gonna get him. You're safe here with us."

"B-b-but..."

"Shh... Just focus on breathing. Justin'll be back any minute, and we can't have him see you like this. He'll kill the guy before we get any information out of him," he lightly chuckled at the end.

The thought of Justin sobered me up. The storm was still swirling around us, thunder and lightning continuing to crash and flash around us. The howling wind worried me; the thought of Justin's car being blown off the road a rising concern. I listened to Ryan's advice and focused on my breathing. Eventually, the sobs subsided, and I was left as a hiccupping mess. Ryan continued to rub soothing circles on my back until I finally pulled away from his embrace.

"I'm sorry," I whispered, embarrassed about my breakdown. I tugged at the ends of my sleeves and wiped the tears and snot from my face. It was one thing for Justin to have seen me a mess like this, but I didn't want his family to think I was weak or a hot mess too.