The Race

Before Patricia could react to what was happening, she felt a strong grip on her left arm and she was quickly pulled down behind the huge tombstone of her parents' graves. The gunfire continued for some minutes and Patricia clutched the box and her purse tightly to her chest, she felt a huge weight covering her body as if protecting her from the chaos whilst also returning fire.

After a while the shootout stopped and Patricia heard a deep male voice shouting saying, "Give up your belongings or we will kill ya!!! You have five seconds or else!!" Then a loud shot was fired in the air. Patricia flinched at the sound and she started trembling with fear. 'This was not at all what she had imagined would happen as soon as she decided to visit her parents' grave. Yes she knew that traveling to the countryside at that hour was risky but she decided to do it anyway because of her stuffed up emotions. She wanted release from the raging chaos inside of her, and the only place she could do that was at her parents' graves. But she never expected to be caught in the middle of this dangerous parade of gunfire and now she was going to be killed by thieves because of some petty things. Oh God!! How is she going to get out of this one'.

"You have three seconds left!!!" Another one of the thieves shouted and shot another gunfire in the air. Patricia started trembling and whimpering, she knew very well that the thieves will kill her even if she decided to give up her belongings. She was going to die and leave the world without executing her revenge. That bastard Ricardo Montenegra will be running free, and Alisha and Zachariah will be left with no one to protect and cater for them. No it can't be...it can't end like this...noo.

In the midst of her chaotic thoughts, Patricia felt two large warm hands touching her jaws and gently lifting up her head so that she can catch sight of a beautiful, handsome man wearing a black t-shirt with jeans, with short wavy hair, a small nose, plumpy pink lips and an athletic body plumbed with muscles beamimg down at her with two beautiful blue sapphire eyes. Patricia felt like she was drowning in those blue eyes and she felt a familiar and comforting warmth emanating from his body and engulfing her body as well. "Don't worry we are going to be ok. We are going to be alright...trust me" said the man gently in a sweet low muscular voice. Patricia felt a strange feeling of de ja vu. She felt like someone already did the same thing to her and that person also had the same blue beautiful and striking sapphire eyes but that person was much more younger than him. Could it be....?. "Bang!!"

"Your five seconds are up!! Now we are gonna kill ya!!", shouted one of the thieves and they started approaching the tombstone. "On my count...I want you to run towards that huge oak tree in the middle of the graveyard", said the man that was with Patricia. "Are you sure...? Isn't that suicide?" Asked Patricia. "Don't worry you are going to be ok. There's only just three of them...", replied the man but before he could go on Patricia suddenly asked, "But what about the fourth one...that one that threatened me with the knife earlier?" The man did not reply but moved slightly to the side for Patricia to get a vision of a lifeless body in a pool of blood just behind the man.

Patricia gasped and quickly looked to the side to avert her eyes from the bad sight. "So here is what I want you to do. On the count of three you are going to run towards that oak tree whilst taking cover behind the tombstones. Since you are...well..a woman...I am sure that only one of the thieves is going to follow you and he won't shoot directly at you but he will shoot at other sides only just to scare you so you would stop but don't stop until you reach the tree because that will give me some time to deal with the remaining two", replied the man. "But are you going to be ok?" Asked Patricia. The man gave Patricia a dashing smile that glimmered in the moonlight and replied, "Don't worry sweeches...I will be fine ". Patricia was taken aback by the pet nickname that the man just called her and she felt her cheeks heating up with a blush.

"Now on my count. 1.....2...3!! Now go!! And run like hell!!", whisper shouted the man. And Patricia quickly sprang from behind the tombstone and started running towards the oak tree. "Damn it!! There she goes!! Go after her quickly!! And make sure you catch her so that we can have a lot of fun!! Hahaha!!" Shouted one of the thieves. And as the man predicted only one of the thieves started following Patricia and also shooting at the sides so that she could get scared and stop. But Patricia did not stop but she kept on running and dodging the bullets behind some tombstones.

When the man saw that the other two thieves were distracted by the chase and were oblivious to his presence, he quickly sprang up from behind the tombstone and head dived into one the thieves and caused him to stumble on the ground, and he hit the thief on the head to make him unconscious. When the other thief saw what happened he tried to shoot the man with his gun but the man was quicker than him and he shot him on the hand that held the gun, and when the thief tried to take it again with the other hand which was uninjured, the man quickly ran towards it and kicked it away and he hit the thief on the head and caused him to fall unconscious. Then he started following the chase to the oak tree.

Patricia felt a sharp pain piercing through her left foot and she knew that she must have injured herself whilst running. But she did not stop until she reached the oak tree and took cover behind it. The thief following her was already breathing heavily due to the chase and he stopped quite a distance from the tree in order to catch his breath. "Damn woman....!(gasping). Where did you learn to run fast like that...But don't worry it's all going to be over soon", said the thief and he started approaching the oak tree. Patricia felt her heart running a marathon in her chest. 'This was it...her end..her end has come' she could feel something warm and sticky flowing down her left foot and she did not need to guess what it was, blood. She knew very well that she must have badly injured her foot when she was running and dodging the bullets behind those tombstones. So there was no way she was going to be able to run anymore. Patricia felt the footsteps of the thief getting closer. And with each step she felt her heart about to leap out her chest in fear. As the footsteps got even more closer she subconsciously held the golden box and her purse tightly to her chest and she whispered with tears flowing down her beautiful cheeks, "I am sorry Dad..I am sorry Mom...forgive me Alisha...forgive me Zach...for being a bad sister...I am surely going to miss you", and she felt the presence of the thief just right behind her and she closed her eyes for the inevitable. But to her uttermost surprise, two large arms encircled her in a warm embrace and placed her head on her strong firm chest.

Patricia heard a loud beating of a heart but instead of causing alarm it gave her a sense of familiar ease. Slowly Patricia felt a breeze brushing on them, and she gently lifted her head only for her eyes to land on a beautiful handsome face with blue sapphire eyes beamimg down at her. Patricia felt her entire body heating up with comforting warmth as she looked deep into those blue sapphire eyes looking at her. 'This...feeling...I have felt it before....it's sooo familiar...its like I am reliving a memory again...but from where...and when....who is he..?' Thought Patricia. After a while the man asked, "Are you alright Miss?" "Yes....yes I am fine thank you....thank you...for...saving my life", replied Patricia whilst smiling and looking at the man in a dreamy daze. However, the man suddenly averted his face from looking at Patricia and he gently disengaged himself from the embrace. Patricia felt a little bit empty and disappointed the moment he let her go. She wanted him to hold her in his arms again but that's got to be a stupid idea because how can she think about that to a stranger whom she only just met. So Patricia mentally scolded herself and she placed her hands on the side and start to rub her arms because all of a sudden the breeze started getting cold.

The man cleared his throat and said, "Well I am glad that you are safe now Miss....but next time please don't travel alone at night in such dangerous places. Local gangs now terrorize these parts at night, waiting to steal and harm unsuspecting victims. So you should be careful". Patricia did not reply but just shake her head in agreement. After a while sounds of police sirens started ringing in the air. "I guess my back up has arrived...tsk...20 minutes late", said the man. "Wait... you are a policeman!!" Asked Patricia in a bewildered voice. "Federal agent actually! The name is....", replied the man but he was interrupted by a man running towards them whilst breathing heavily and shouting. "Captain!! Woo!! Thank goodness you are alright!! (Gasping), when I received your call...I was in the middle a bath....and I...went to the police station to get some back up...but the old farts!! Didn't listen to me at first, they thought it was a prank...and then..I realized that left my badge at home....and I had to go back to retrieve it and came back to the police station and already saw them...leaving saying that someone called them after hearing some shots being fired at the graveyard....and then...." "Woo! Woo! Easy there partner! I don't have time to dingle around here and listen to your bullshit nonsense ok! You are late! You are late! Period! Now take these suckers to jail and clean this mess up! Now!", said the man who was named captain by the other man. "Yes Sir!! I will do that right away", replied the other man and he left to give orders to the police officers that came with him.

Patricia just softly giggled at the spectacle and she sarcastically said, "So..you are also a captain huh? I guess that's why you are so efficient in your work" and she gestured to the unconscious bodies being dragged by the policemen across the graveyard. The captain just chuckled and said, "Well my work did save you Miss...did it not?" "Mmmm", Patricia just hummed and smiled. "Well I guess we better go now...those old farts at the police station might want to get our statements. So shall we go?" Asked the captain. "Yes...of course", replied Patricia. But before she could take a step she felt an immense sharp pain piercing through her left foot and she quickly dropped to the ground with a loud small yelp. The captain quickly came to her aid and knelt beside her and he started asking, "Miss are you alright? Are you hurt?" "Yes...I think I might have injured my left foot during the chase. Ouch!! It really hurts...", replied Patricia. The captain then gently lifted the hem of her dress to get a look at the injury and he saw her foot coated with blood and some of it was already drying up, and he saw a gore at the side of the foot just near the ankle. The captain felt his blood boiling in anger, mostly towards himself because he should have checked her for injuries first before embracing her in his arms earlier. But he just couldn't help it, when he saw her beautiful face covered with tears and fear after knocking down the thief who was approaching the tree unconscious, he felt the soaring need to embrace her and comfort her and kiss those fears and tears away but he restrained from doing the latter and decided to do the first action instead. All in a ruse that it might scare her, and make her think that he was one of those perverted thieves who wanted to cause her harm.

However, again without thinking, he quickly stood up and picked Patricia in a princess style and went with her to one of the police cars that were at the gate of the cemetery and gently placed her at the back seat and he quickly jumped to the driver's seat and drove away, leaving everyone at the scene dumbfounded especially his subordinate who could not help but gape at the speeding car driving off with his mouth agape thinking, 'What the hell!!!'