Taking Hold {ON HOLD}

Chapter Four

The rain pelted down onto the pavement, the earlier sunshine forgotten as anxious feet scurried away to find cover. A rumble of thunder crackled through the air, making the scurries turn to sprints as the downpour thickened leaving the scent of fresh rain heavy within the air.

The storm splintered across the sky, the proud knights of the sky declaring their quarrel. Their conflict was loud, demanding the attention of most but Ana barely noticed the rain.

Her umbrella was forgotten at home, probably in a handbag stuffed in the bottom of her wardrobe, her coat barely surviving the thick curtain of rain but at that moment she didn't even consider her misfortune. The soles of her well-worn shoes splashed carelessly upon the pavement as she strode through the throngs of people. They parted ways for her, drifting aside as if they sensed not to stand in her way but there was one man that didn't move. He stood, still fifty metres or so away from Ana but he simply stood, staring at her as she approached.

A siren blared, passing through the traffic at the exact moment that Ana brushed past the man. It was smooth, the change of hands almost unnoticeable as the practiced movements were flawlessly executed. The deep gravelly voice spared her a swift 'grazie' before Ana moved past him and continued through the crowd.

Her heart pounded, her eyes smarted, her breath caught but she resisted turning around.

There was no going back now.

***

"Adam!" Ana all but screamed as she came out of the bathroom, now clutching the rather revealing towel much tighter towards her body. "What the hell!? That door was locked!"

"I am an international spy." Adam deadpanned as he stretched out on Ana's bed, flicking through one of the magazines that had been on Ana's bedside table as if he was completely unbothered by Ana's presence. The reality was rather different.

"That doesn't mean you can just break into my room, be a normal person for once and I don't know, knock maybe?!" He smiled at her lazily and Ana knew that she was fighting a pointless battle, now that he knew that it bothered her she would doubtlessly have many more unannounced visits from the Legend.

She exhaled, attempting to calm herself after the shock of seeing him in her room as she had come out of the shower. "What did you want?"

"Oh, it's nothing that can't wait. You get changed and then we can talk."

"Adam." She hissed, glaring at him accusingly.

"Yes?" He replied innocently, gazing up at her in a way that dared her to challenge him. He was trying to rile her up and unfortunately it was working.

Ana clenched her eyes shut, somewhat wishing that when she reopened them he would have mystically vanished. "Turn around." Regrettably, miracles rarely happened.

Adam obeyed her instruction at first, turning so that he faced the cream wall and listening as she rummaged through her clothes to pick out something to wear but he turned instinctually at her hiss of pain and was greeted by Ana in jeans and a bra.

"Adam!" She exclaimed once more but her shout fell on deaf ears as his eyes locked on her ribs. Pushing himself up from the bed he crossed the room in a few large strides before he gently ran his fingertips over the blossoming bruise that marked her skin. Its purple centre petered out of different shades of yellow like a galaxy of stars covering Ana's upper ribs.

"Was this from last night?" It had been a messy evening. Nothing had worked out as planned and Chambers had been none too happy about it. Adam had little doubt that the phone call he had received in the early hours of this morning was only the first in a very long line of them.