Chapter Nine

 ‘NO!!!!’

Considering what I was witnessing, I felt like I couldn’t believe my own two eyes.

It all happened like it was happening in a split second but it was happening right in front of me and I wasn’t doing anything.

I wasn’t doing anything yet…

I needed one moment for all my instincts to kick in and for the real me to surface. I blinked once and I knew what I had to do and how I had to do.

Without a secondary thought now, I was pacing towards the cab that was at the moment tormenting my friends. I could see through the spectacles I was sporting, that the guys weren’t putting up much of a resistance. The sight I saw was Deke was the last one with his feet still planted on the Earth beneath him and I think it was Rocky who was half hanging out the passenger side up front. The whole thing seemed meaningless and I didn’t know what was going on but all I knew was whoever was after their parents were after them now.

I reached the cab exactly when they’d succeeded in pulling in Deke completely. I hauled the cab door open with all the adrenaline that was rushing through my veins and simultaneously tried to balance myself on both my feet as I still hadn’t stopped from running. Probably the guy who was inside the cab right next to me was smart enough to notice it; he didn’t even give me a chance. Before I knew it, I fell onto the ground thumping hard with a pain in my stomach that had me whining and wincing out loud. I was kicked down hard enough for me to voluntarily hold my tummy before it could feel like it could explode from the pain. Mia was there almost immediately as I fell to the ground but was too late to break the fall or stop the cab that was pacing away from us.

‘Ayu…what the hell happened here?!’ Mia was stuttering and her body was shaking so much I could feel it when she was helping me up.

‘We need to follow! Give me the keys!’ I could hear my voice and I was definite about the fact that I was sounding different. It was about time that I started to freak Mia out and I wasn’t far from being right.

‘Ayu…you’re asking for my car keys?’ she was trembling, her normal symptom she showcases when she is confused. I knew one thing for sure…there was no time for me to deal with her confusion.

I grabbed the keys from her key chain and paced towards her car when she followed dumbstruck. I got into the driver seat and Mia slowly got into the passenger seat. I wasn’t panicking as I could still see the cab in front of us. When she finally closed the door, she had but one thing to ask me.

‘You drive cars?’ she was plain and emotionless when she uttered those words.

Well, I had but only one thing to tell her.

‘I’d wear the seat belt if I were you!’

The next thing I can remember is that I was driving Mia’s car at the top of its speed and she was screaming at the top of her voice.

‘Ayu!!! Will you please slow down?! Just a Little!!! We won’t lose them if you do so too!’

My head wasn’t working or interpreting anything that she was telling me. All I was sure about was to keep my eyes focused on the cab that was jetting past before us and it was carrying my family with it. I knew that this wasn’t something that shocked me. Deep down I somehow knew that they were going to be attacked sooner than later. I was just wishing that it would be later…or rather never. Then again, not everything that I wished for has come true.

Being an early hour and driving around a lazy area was nothing but an advantage to the cab and it was easing past the few cars that made up the apparent blockade I was hoping for. With them rushing away, my foot rested more on the accelerator, pushing us and the vehicle to its limit.

‘Left….break right…Use the clutch! USE THE CLUTCH!!’ Mia’s random commands were barely reaching my ears let alone my head. She probably thought I was driven by adrenaline and I was doing something I had no idea about. The thing she didn’t know was that I knew it better.

As I was driving, I could see movement inside the cab but it was vague enough for it to deceive me any clear details. Then again, I would bet my head on this wager for I was sure that there was a struggle going on in there. The guys were fighting back and I kept my head clear enough to not think anything else worse. What worried me though now was that I didn’t know if they were winning or losing. Among the struggling figures, one face became a little clear as it came close to the rear end of the car, pushing the face onto the rear window.

I wish my eyes were swindling me in some way as I didn’t want to believe what I was seeing at this moment. I even blinked twice to confirm to myself that I was just seeing things and if I was seeing it right. Then again, my vision wouldn’t change and I knew that yet another wish of mine has been denied. Before I could realize, we were driving towards the freeway. What seemed like a ten minute drive had actually comprised half the town by travelling at such velocity. The speed was plausible for the progress. Now what I was feeling, felt somehow different.

‘Are you okay, Ayu? Why are you slowing down?’ Mia’s voice finally reached my head, alerting me of the reality rather than the feeling of regret that was stirring inside of me.  Probably I had slowed down, intending an escape from the possible future that might play out before me. However, that escape would cost me my friends too. My friends…my only family. I will not let them pay the price for my mistake.

The very thought kicked back the adrenaline that was driving me all along now and I was back in the chase. I pushed the accelerator with every ounce of energy that I could trap and in no time, I was tailing the cab again. Something unusual was now persisting within and I didn’t like the looks of it. The struggles and fights seemed to have stopped and a little order seemed to have existed. I couldn’t help but imagine worse scenarios but in the midst of the ruckus in me, I knew the truth. They were safe…at least for the moment.

‘They’ve stopped moving…’ Mia dragged under her breath hinting every bit of tension that I was feeling in me. She had been noticing too and she on the other hand, is worse at imagining scenarios especially the worse ones.

This wasn’t an unlikely happening. If I didn’t know any better, which I knew, they were negotiating. The brothers weren’t a victim but the card they would play to protect their cover and win the game. Their parents were and still are the bait for something big and the brothers are the line that would hold it there. What bothered me is that, the people who are doing this aren’t the ones who’d do petty jobs such as kidnapping for ransom. Every move wasn’t making me feel any better and every move hinted that I am in deep shit.

To our shock, the struggles started again and this time I was sure that the guys were fighting back. The movement was much more vivid and I could see distinct silhouettes that perfectly resembled Sean and Deke in the back seat. The way they were moving suggested only one thing to me and what I was concluding wasn’t the best of the endings that I need right now.

“Mia…they are going to jump!’ I finally spoke my first words since we started driving and they weren’t the ones she’d expect out of me right now.

‘Jump? What do you mean by jump? Like ‘jump’ jump? They’re going to jump out of a running car?!’ she just kept repeating the same question probably trying to let the possible future that might play before us.

‘I will be hitting the brakes too hard. I need you to hold on to something. Do not blame me for a concussion.’

‘Uh huh…’ was all she could manage for my fair warning and that was an assurance enough for me.

I started to grip the steering wheel tighter, involuntarily. I held it so tight I could feel the heat. I saw through the corner of my eye that Mia was also holding on to seat belt with one hand and placed the other on the dashboard, firmly holding herself in her seat. I knew what was going to happen in the next few minutes and I was doing the only possible thing I can do right now than running over my family.

‘Spare me the dramatics, guys!’ and then there was yet another wish that didn’t come true. The cab doors flung open almost stopping my heart.

Sean and Deke jumped off from the back side while Rocky was flying out from the front. It almost felt like time had slowed down and I was witnessing the whole thing in slow motion. They were jumping with perfect movement that is when they land, they’ll land safe, probably put a 180 spin to it but fine rest of the way. I hit the brakes right at the moment, letting out a loud screech and smoke from the burning of the tires due to the friction with the road. The car came to an abrupt halt and the guys hit the ground as hard as ever as they landed. The cab, to my surprise continued to drive on, not bothering about them.

We both ran out of the car and went right to the guys’ aid. I reached Sean first and he was groaning in pain. Rocky was just a little close to him while Deke was fallen on the opposite side and Mia was already getting him up. I couldn’t believe the scene that was playing before me and just realized that I was fighting tears that were desperate to escape my eyes. Aimlessly, I looked over the direction that the cab was driving away in full speed now. Immediately, at that very instant, the image of the person I saw before flashed in my memory, blinding me for a second. I knew one thing for sure now. I was not going to escape this time.

‘A...Ayu…’ a beat up Rocky called me in a faint voice and then on I remembered nothing.

 The next clear thing I remember was sitting outside the ER where we rushed the guys to be looked upon. Mia was constantly holding my hand to calm me down but it didn’t do much good to me. I was apparently tensed up that I was not even seeing things clearly. Of course I was tensed! My guys were just scraped off the road and crammed into the back seat of our car and rushed to the hospital unconscious. The last thing I want to be is calm.

‘Chill out, Ayu! Rocky will be fine. His concussion wouldn’t have gone worse.’

Mia was just adding fuel to the fire without her knowing. She was looking out for me but along with that she was just breaking me down. Rocky was the worst affected by the fall. His concussion and the bullet wound had taken the toll on him and he was unconscious right from the start. I was just praying that he was okay. Sean and Deke were holding up but Deke passed out when we reached the hospital. Sean was the only sane one but the doctors took him for a checkup too, just to make sure that he was completely okay.  

I nodded back at her, just to be polite but right now, all I could do was pray that everything was all right.

‘You can see them now…’ the nurse finally announced to us and I was on my foot that very instant.

I rushed in to find them in three separate beds, all of them sitting up on their own and my eyes fell on Rocky. The very instant I saw him, involuntarily I started to rush to him and gave him the tightest hug I’ve given anyone in a long time, fighting my tears simultaneously.

‘So…I have to be beaten up and battered to get a hug from you?’ he sarcastically remarked my actions but I was in no situation to let him go. ‘I’ll take it anyway.’ And so he hugged me back.

It wasn’t a little later than a happy reunion; we all settled to talk about the sudden events that just happened like a blitz.

‘The whole thing was bizarre. It was just surreal in all. I can’t believe it even happened.’ Deke was going on and on about the incident. He was always a jumpy person and this has gotten him a little too much.

‘It was just pure adrenaline rush that saved us. We can’t even believe that we survived this.’ Rocky was exhaling most of the time like he was trying to release all the pressure he was feeling.

‘Guys…’ I interrupted them. I had to. ‘I need you to revisit what happened completely. Every detail that happened in there will be important. We will need it to figure out what all this uncoordinated events will possibly mean.’

‘Trust me…after we tell you what happened in there, you might want to redefine the terms such as bizarre and absurd.’

Deke replied to me and it was a surprise in itself. I immediately turned to see if he was facing me but he disappointed me as usual. He was looking at the ground while he was speaking. I guess the ground with its polished tiles is much more interesting than my face.

I trust you alright…you are never going to change.

‘What really happened in there that surprises you this much?’ Mia’s voice distracted me from my personal thoughts and brought me back to the ugly reality.

‘Well…how do we start?’ Sean was all confused and dazed by just the thought of it.

‘The question you need to ask yourself is where do we start it? When did the crazy start?’ I asked sincerely.

‘I might be able to answer that…’ Rocky suddenly suggested and all of our attention was on him revisiting what happened an hour ago.

An hour ago,

I knew my life was going to end when I realized that I was being hauled in by men that looked exactly like the ones that took our parents. It wasn’t a good sign and my brothers were also going along with me.

It seems like my family is cursed or something. We are either hauled or beaten up to die eventually.

There were exactly five men inside and they looked bigger than the ones who shot at us a day ago. They were strong enough to effortlessly pull in three grown up guys and hold them down. By the looks of what Deke was doing, he wasn’t going down without a fight. Sean was already tucked in between two of the large, mad men while Deke was literally shrugging himself off of his strong hold. I barely got to settle myself in the front seat and the guy holding me was holding me like he was going to spank my butt. My imagination ran wild for a moment. I didn’t think there’ll be nothing that these guys will not do in the name of torture.

Screaming was filling my ear and Sean was finally acting alive. He was pulling and pushing within the squashed up position that he was in and now I felt that we were going to have a fight, a fight that will be barely enough to get us out alive enough for us to fight again to get our parents.

Right about when I was allowed to reposition myself and land my trunk on the seat, I turned back to see Deke finally being pulled into the cab. As disappointment mauled over me, I saw something that had me worrying even more. Ayu was running towards the cab and it wasn’t good for her. But there was something in her eyes that made me think otherwise. She was fierce and she looked like she knew exactly what she was doing…like she had already done before. It didn’t seem to look like herself at that moment but a different person whom I never knew.

She was now almost at the door that was shut right behind Deke’s flailing legs and she was running in such a speed I didn’t think she’d be able to stop. But then again, she was there and she was now opening the door to try to help us. Before I could even realize it, she was there looking aghast and before she could realize, she was kicked hard on her stomach and she fell back as the cab raced away.

I couldn’t even scream out her name as the speed was now at its limit and the guy who was holding me just plunged onto the attack right away and I was being hit or to be more specific, slapped on my face like I was a mat that was being slapped off all its dust. It was painful but it didn’t bring out any blood which scared me to hell. I don’t want to die of internal injuries or any kind of blood clots within me. They were professionals and they knew exactly what they were doing. What we didn’t know was what we were doing here!

‘You three chipmunks better listen up…’ one of the guys from the back tried to start talking but Deke sure wasn’t in the mood to let that happen. He started swinging his arms and legs around in spite of his awkward position behind and I am absolutely sure he got more than just a lucky swing at one of them.

He was hitting them and he was aiming it. I heard groans and moans from the back and the guy who was hitting me had stopped, successfully distracted by Deke heroics. At that very moment, I looked at Sean who was as bewildered as I was. We didn’t know Deke had the strength in him and this was a perfectly good thing at a perfectly good time. Sean slowly looked over at me and he read exactly what was going on in my head. He nodded his head in approval and I was more glad than unsure.

If Deke can aim, I can slaughter. I have better hand eye coordination.

Before I could realize, we were in battle. Sean was throwing punches and Deke was ballistic. I bet he had absolutely no idea what was going on with him. I was holding the lone guy that was against me and I was hitting back like I had to or else I’d die. My knuckles were hurting and my arm was burning like I’d let them directly into the fire. I had no idea that this pained so badly and couldn’t help but think the pain my brothers were feeling. It’s not like we are experts in martial arts or something. We barely break our guitars after a rocking performance. We have strength but not to the extent of unimaginable combat level. Now, however, we were doing it. I could feel my heart beating like hell and I could understand that my adrenaline was pulling me through, just as my brothers. The adrenaline was immense enough that Sean was able to rip off the black masks off one of them and push him upon the rear window, his face smacked onto it.

I couldn’t help but smile at our victorious act here. Not that we’ve seen any proper victory yet but we were there and we were trying. I got distracted from what I was doing and sat there admiring my brothers, which proved to be costly.

I got hit right on my face and the pain was excruciating. I yelled my heart out as I fell hitting the door and it sure was enough to get my brothers’ focus.

‘Rocky!’ I could hear them yell out my name in harmony but immediately after then, it was the end of our reign.

With multiple hits to the gut and face, my brothers were finally held down and I was pulled up to give my entire attention to whatever they were going to tell us.

‘You boys are a bunch of over excited freaks, aren’t you?’ the same voice continued, sarcastically complimenting us. I was glad that we made them sweat and we weren’t going without a fight.

‘What do you want us to say? We are enthusiastic. We are especially when we get to kick your sorry asses.’ Deke’s mouth wasn’t resting as well his body was at the moment.

‘So, you are the loud mouthed one.’ The guy’s eyes, which were the only visible part of his whole body and which wasn’t wearing black, shifted to look at Deke with rage clearly radiating out of it.

I could see Deke swallowing hard, trying to keep a straight face and not show the actual fear that he was feeling inside. Sean was trying to escape the chokehold he was in to try and help out his brother but at that moment, nothing seemed plausible.

‘Hey…we don’t get to play with them now!’ one other guy put his hand in between Deke and the mad one and stopped him. ‘Let’s just do the job and leave.’

What do they mean by that? What the hell is happening here?

‘You want to see your parents again?’ The mad one spoke again making our breath stop right then.

‘You do anything to them…I swear to God I’ll hunt you down!’ Deke was enraged and Sean was dumbstruck. I was just looking at the floating eyes, all blank and confused not knowing what to do next.

‘What do you want from us? Money? We will try to give it to you!’ Sean was now pleading to them I could tell he was worried. The mad man didn’t seem to be so.

‘Oh…we don’t want your money or anything sweetheart…’ he was still maintaining the sarcasm in his tone and he sounded like he had something else in his mind.

‘Then what? We’ll do it… just give us our parents.’ Sean was negotiating the best he could but deep down I felt like this wasn’t going to turn out pretty.

‘Anything?’

‘If it is possible for us to do…’

‘Of course it is possible…especially by you. All three of you…’

My heart was beating and I could feel the sweat sliding off my forehead. I wasn’t blinking and so were my brothers. I was unknowingly holding my breath and what came after, made sure it chocked me immensely.

‘We want you to kill someone…’

‘They said what?’ I couldn’t help but interrupt Rocky’s narration. I wasn’t sure that I heard it right. They wanted them to kill?

‘Yes…they did.’ Sean continued. ‘They said that if we killed the person they showed us, they’d let our parents go.’

‘What happened next?’ Mia was so into the story she wanted to know what happened next.

‘We didn’t want to hear anymore crap from them. So we pushed and pulled and we jumped out and here we are.’ Deke completed it for her.

‘I don’t know why this all happened to us. I mean…why would we be targets of such a ruthless plan?’

For some weird reason…I felt like I knew the answer to Rocky’s question and he will not like the answer.