The Descendent Protectors

Chapter Twenty-Seven

I reached the staircase within seconds, but the instant my hand grabbed the railing, I heard the creak of a door opening by the end of the hallway and the deep voices of at least three men discussing a matter among themselves. A sudden rush of adrenaline coursed through my veins and a voice in my head yelled at me to flight.

Letting go of my grip on the railing, I flew down the stairs skipping two - sometimes three - steps at a time. However, in the process of running, the sound of my feet coming down hard on the steps got louder than before and echoed through the house, and the murmurs of earlier slowly came to a stop. I didn't spare a second to glance behind as I kept running down the long staircase, reaching the end and frantically searching the front room for my purse. I needed my purse if I wanted to get out of here, it carried my phone - which I needed to call a cab - and also my money - which I needed to pay the cab driver with.

I rushed from room to room, entering the kitchen too and walking straight into the housekeeper from earlier as she carried a pile of napkins in her hands, she almost dropped them to the floor and I murmured quick apologies.

"P-purse! Did you see my purse?!" I didn't know why but I was whisper-yelling at her as her brown eyes widened in fear.

She shook her head repeatedly. "N-no, ma'am. I did not see your purse."

I groaned loudly, my heartbeat now racing as I began to panic. I had to get out of here before I run into anyone else. I needed to go home. I needed my friends.

"Your purse is in the living-room, ma'am." A soft voice spoke from behind the counter; it was a younger girl dressed in the same house-keeping attire who had informed me of that.

I nodded my head, repeatedly thanking her as I left through the kitchen door, not knowing where exactly the living-room was but going on a search anyway.

After walking into three different seating areas and finding each to be bigger than the last, I finally found which living-room the housekeeper was talking about when I spotted my black purse on a coffee table right next to an L-shaped couch. I rushed over to it and grabbed the bag, zipping it open and fishing for my phone. With trembling hands I began to dial the number to call a cab, simultaneously turning to head towards the front door. But the second I turned away I slammed violently into what felt like a wall, losing my balance and dropping the phone. I heard it clatter to the ground, and I cringed at the sound - knowing for sure my phone screen wouldn't have come out alive from the strong impact.

A pair of hands grabbed my upper arms and steadied me, and I instantly backed away from the familiar touch. My eyes fell down to where my phone lay, face-down on the floor.

"Everything alright?" Xavier questioned.

I bit the inside of my cheek, last night's memories still fresh in my mind. "You broke my phone," I accused.

His head lowered to where my eyes lay, and he cleared his throat. "I apologize. I will replace it with a newer one."

My neck heated up. "I don't want you to do that."

Xavier went silent for a second, before speaking up. "But I must make up for my mistake."

I shook my head, stepping aside to pass him by. "I want to go home." I started towards the open doorway leading out of the living-room, searching for the front door. And I could hear Xavier's footsteps following me behind.

"Nora, I don't think that's a good idea-"

"I want to see my friends," I cut him off.

He reached out for my arm once more, his hand coming to wrap around my wrist and stop me from moving further away. I turned around and yanked my arm out of his grip, stumbling a step back. "Stop touching me." I blurted out.