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C L A I R E
My panic mode sets in and instead of gently untying the thread off my leg, I yank hard at it, the strong thread cutting the skin of my ankle as I stand up, taking steps back from the man.
"I'm getting sick of this. WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?" I shout at him. "WHAT DO YOU WANT?"
"I want you dead," he drops casually, drawing nearer. Rose and Doris are right behind me and they are crying. I take a peek at the floor trying to look for my phone but it is not anywhere nearby. "Didn't know killing you would be this hard though. You surprise me every time, Claire."
There is laughter in his words, the kind which sounds like he is making fun of himself and he isn't embarrassed by that. He must be pissed at me. He knew that he couldn't get me when I was alone and so he is here, using Rose and Doris as leverage against me. How did he even get in? No one from outside was allowed to enter the mansion — no one except the guards themselves and Jake.
Is he one of the guards?
"Let them go," I say to the man, my hands curling into fists as I maintain my stance, shielding my family behind me. I am scared of him but I can't allow it to show. "You want me. You can have me but let them go."
I hear Rose's painful moan from behind me. It is like she is trying to say something. I wish I had the time to remove that tape from her mouth. But I can't do that now. One thing Rose taught me as my first lesson was to never be distracted from your opponent. One second of ignorance can cause damage for a lifetime.
The masked man stalks towards me, his soundless boots pressing hard with each step.
"That's good, Claire. You're taking responsibility for your actions...but unfortunately..." He stops and tilts his head to a side as if to study me. "...I can't let them go. They are my investment in an audience. They will stay right where they are and they will watch."
I suck in a breath at his words. He gets even more twisted with each meeting of ours. Whoever he is behind his mask, he is dangerous because he never gives up until he gets what he wants.
And he wants me.
Suck it! He won't get me.
"The cops...will be here. You can't kill me. They know my location and they are on their way."
"I'll be done by the time they get here, darling," he chuckles, twirling the knife in his hand, grabbing it tightly, the sharp point of the steel pointing towards me.
Sweat trickles down my cheeks as I look at the knife, my nerves growing frantic at the memories of it being that close to slicing through me. I take more steps back, moving past Rose and Doris as my eyes stay fixed on the weapon. The man comes closer, no longer talking and the silence between us gets impenetrable.
Without another thought, I turn back and run to the nearest window overlooking the garden. My footsteps thump loudly on the floor along with his as I reach for the window but just as I am about to pull it open, an arm wraps around my waist, picking me up from the floor. I scream, jerking my legs in the air as the man drags me with him. He drops me hard on the floor, making me see stars for a few seconds when my head hits the marble with a thud.
As I try to adjust my vision, he grabs hold of one of my ankles and starts to pull me back towards him, sliding my body on the floor. Seeing him do that, I use my other leg to place it over the one he is holding and aim for a hit on his shin. I get his thigh instead but the impact is hard enough to make him release my ankle.
"You bloody bitch!" he curses as I try to get up again but he is quicker and he grabs hold of my hair, tugging it hard.
"Ahh!" I scream as one of my hands reaches behind my head to grab his arm while the other twists around, grabbing his wrist.
I try to twist his arm but he is stronger than me. Much stronger and bigger. My few days of training wouldn't give me an advantage against him. I wish I was faster. I wish I had more time. I could have at least died fighting.
He suddenly lets go of my hair and flips me around so that I land on my back. He hovers over me, pressing the knife over my throat. His weight is on my thighs as he grabs hold of one of my wrists. I try to shove at his chest with my other hand to no avail.
"You know what?" he hisses in that harsh, inhuman voice. "I've changed my mind. I'm just gonna kill you and be done with it. He's going to find you anyway. He's going to see what I did to his love. He will know what it is like to lose someone because of someone else."
"I...I don't know who you're talking about. Please...let me go," I sob, tears spilling from my eyes as my head hurts from when he pulled on my hair.
"Shut up!" he yells, his voice seething with anger. "Time's up, little villain."
I shut my eyes when the sharp point of his knife is at my throat and his thumb is over the hilt, about to press, when suddenly, the weight over my body lightens as something pulls him off me.
I open my eyes and see Vaughn throwing a hard punch at the man's face when he turns. A sigh leaves me along with a sob at the sight of him and I don't know if it's a sigh of relief or fear. I am frozen as I watch them. Even in the dark, I can see them clearly through the frequent lightning strikes outside.
The man, even though appearing startled for a while, soon gets his wits back and stops Vaughn's other hand by grabbing it tightly in his hold. He twists it and Vaughn lets out a painful cry. However, he manages to use that very hand to grab the man's wrist, twisting it back. The man groans, using the hand with the knife to stab Vaughn with it but Vaughn kicks him hard on his wrist, making the knife fly from his hand. The sound of the steel is light as it falls somewhere I don't see.
The man screams in frustration as he turns and grabs Vaughn's collar, pushing him hard against a bookshelf behind him. The books fall from the shelf at the collision and Vaughn hits the masked man's nose with his forehead. The latter reverts at the attack. He lets out a maddening cry as he hurls himself at Vaughn again, grabbing the front of his shirt and shoving him to the floor.
Vaughn lands an uppercut on the man's chin and blood drips from behind the mask, the lightning making the drops visible on the floor.
There is nothing but the sound of hits and grunts as the two men embroil themselves in what seems to be a never-ending fight. They are both equally strong, equally built muscles, and both seem to be charged with anger towards one another. My frozen body starts to shiver as I watch them almost on the verge of killing each other.
Both the men grab each other's throats as Vaughn uses his leg to kick the man's shin. The man is pushed off Vaughn and the latter uses his distraction to grab him by his shoulder and push him hard until the man falls on the floor. Unfortunately, the stranger is fast too. His one hit lands straight on Vaughn's chest and blood spits out of Vaughn's nose.
"Vaughn!" I scream, coming back to my senses and pulling myself up on my feet as quickly as possible.
My legs are unsteady, and my head hurts but I try to go near them. The men are busy throwing fists at each other to notice me. While Vaughn had the upper hand a while ago, the stranger is at an advantage now. The man throws a right hook at Vaughn and jumps up to his feet as Vaughn falls face-first on the floor, using his palms to prevent his fall.
The man wraps his arms around Vaughn's neck, squeezing at his throat. "I couldn't save my love from you, Jackson. I'm not letting you save yours."
Vaughn struggles in his grip and I look around the room for the knife. Instead, I find one of Doris's flower vases placed near the bookshelf. I run towards it and pick it up.
Due to his back facing me and his mind occupied with Vaughn, the man doesn't see me when I grab hold of the neck of the vase and lift it high over my head. Without further thought, I slam it hard on the man's head. He screams, arms falling loose from around Vaughn as he grabs his head and turns towards me. The vase crashes when it falls on the floor beside his feet.
His mask comes a little loose and I wait for it to fall but it stays half attached to his face as the man stalks towards me, clutching his head between both hands.
"You fucking bitch!" he growls but before he can grab hold of me, Vaughn pushes him hard from behind, making his knees give out and he falls on his face near my feet.
I gasp as he drops near me, writhing in pain. Vaughn picks up the knife which fell on the floor before from somewhere near the bookshelf and with his other hand, grabs hold of the man's clothes, pulling and turning him around.
"Claire...get his mask off," he orders me, panting loudly as he holds the knife above the man's throat and the latter stills beneath him.
I quietly do as asked, crouching down and grabbing hold of the man's mask, curling my fingers around the edge, and pulling it off him in one go.
My heart leaps in my throat as I recognize the familiar face, the thunder outside lightening it with a menacing appearance as his blue eyes shine when they meet mine.
It can't be him. No.
Noah Striker never had blue eyes.