Chapter nine

Chapter nine


Chapter nine

Astrid

I didn't allow myself to think. I couldn't. The only thing on my mind as I heard the sound was my mother. She was okay. She had to be.

I didn't know when I moved from the stairs and started running towards the hall, but I didn't let myself think about that either. I just need to get to her. I didn't let myself think about the screams coming from the hall either. I convinced myself my mum wasn't among the people screaming for help.

I vaguely heard someone calling my name but I didn't know who and I didn't care. I made it to the hall in time to see the entire place engulfed in smoke and people were scrambling to get out.

The smoke was so thick that I couldn't see anything but I walked into it. I couldn't leave without my mum. What if she was trapped inside here somewhere?

But I didn't manage to take one step forward before I was suddenly scooped off the floor. I didn't see the face of the person who carried me but I didn't need to. As the scent of smoke and bourbon wafted into my nostrils, I knew exactly who it was.

I began screaming at the top of my voice, begging him to let me go find my mother, but he didn't listen. He just kept walking. I didn't give up either. I clutched harder on his shirt and continued pleading with him. He was saying something to me, but I couldn't hear past the ringing in my ears and the sight of the heavy smoke.

She couldn't be in there. She couldn't die and leave me. I would take her abandoning me for her new family than dying. I wasn't even going to think about death.

My feet touched the ground and I whirled towards Cornelius, tears brimming in my eyes. My hands went flying, landing heavily on his cheek before I could stop myself. I was too angry to care about the consequences of what I just did.

“How fucking dare you?!” I yelled. “My mother was in there and you stopped me from saving her!”

He didn't say anything. He simply stared at me, those gray eyes flickering with barely restrained rage, but I didn't care. I barely knew him but he had been a total ass the whole time.

“Rosa,”

My heart melted as I heard that name even before I saw her. I turned away from my asshole of a stepbrother and saw her staring at me, her lips slightly parted.

Leon was standing beside her, his expression was flickering between shock and amusement.

Yeah, they definitely saw me slap him.

I rushed towards my mother and hugged her tightly. She hugged me back and began stroking my hair in a gentle manner.

“It's okay, Sweetie. We're fine now.”

I didn't pull away from her for a long time and neither did she. I allowed myself to soak in her presence and breathe in relief. She was here. Not dead.

“I don't mean to interrupt this beautiful reunion but we really gotta go. We need to get out of here before they find us.” Leon said.

I finally pulled away from my mum and stared at Leon. The asshole brother had left, his ego probably bruised beyond repair. I'd hit him two times in one day. I doubt he was used to taking any kind of beating.

But I didn't focus much on Mr Rude and Grumpy as Leon's words echoed in my mind.

“Before who finds us?” I asked.

Leon and my mother exchanged a look I didn't understand. A flicker of fear passed through my mother's face, but it was gone before I could ask about it. But I'd already seen it.

In that moment, my mother's words came rushing into my mind. When I asked why she decided to marry again, she'd said she wanted to protect us. Although, I interrupted those words differently back then, but it struck me now that the meaning might be different.

The look on her face said she knew I'd figured it out, but it didn't stop me from asking the question.

“Mum, who are we running from?”

Her posture became rigid and her face turned as all colors were drained from it. Her mouth opened and closed like she couldn't find the words.

Whatever this secret was, it was definitely bigger than I thought. It made my guts churn that she had kept something that big from me all this while. We used to tell each other everything.

But before my mum could get any words out, sound of gunshots filled the air. And the expression on my mother's face was enough to make me fear what was coming. I've never seen her look so scared.

“Fuck,” Leon breathed. “It's too late. They're already here.”

My mum whirled towards Leon, all traces of fear falling away as she held her chin up.

“Hand it over and lead the way. I'll cover our back.” She said.

I was about to ask what she meant but Leon seem to immediately understand. He nodded and did the most unbelievable thing ever. He pulled out two revolvers and threw one at my mother.

She caught it with practised ease. She pulled her hair into a tight bun and ripped her wedding dress so that the slit was now reaching her thigh.

She groaned about something I couldn't hear, but again, Leon understood. He pulled out a small knife and ripped her wedding dress in half, turning it into a short gown.

I stood there in absolute shock, looking at the scene unfold before me. When she was done, she looked absolutely nothing like the woman I grew up to know.

“And there is the Caroline Wolfe I know and adore.” Leon purred, seemingly unfazed by all of this.

Me? I was staring at this imposter wearing my mum's face with my mouth wide opened. She looked so much like me when I'm out ‘working’. The resting bitch face so unlike the soft and smiley face of my mum.

“Honey, I know you have a lot of questions and I'll answer everything, but right now, we gotta go.” She said.

Even her voice was different. It had an edge to it that I had never noticed until now.

I was shoved into the middle of Leon and her as both of them held their guns up, their faces were pictures of calmness and death.

They began shooting as we made our way out of the big mansion. I always thought that I'd witnessed the worst violence there was, but this scenario made being chased by Seth's men seem like child's play.

The sound of shooting grew as we made our way to ehat seem like an underground parking lot. The place was empty but several cars were lined inside.

Leon suddenly disappeared and came back with a bunch of keys. My mum was still assuming her fight stance, but she turned as Leon walked to a black car.

“Bulletproof?” She asked.

Leon nodded and slid into the driver's seat. Despite my shock, I was still conscious enough to know that we had to keep going. My questions could come later.

I slid into the backseat while my mother sat in the passenger's seat.

“Can't say I missed that.” She sighed heavily.

“But you were amazing out there.” Leon said and my mum cut him a hard glare.

This seems like a right time to ask a question. But even then I couldn't come up with the right one.

“Who are those guys and what do they want?” I asked.

Mum stiffened but she didn't look at me. She kept her gaze fixated on the window. Leon's eyes met mine and I saw something like pity in them.

Just when I thought she wasn't going to reply, my mum inhaled sharply.

“You.” She breathed. “They want you.”