Chapter 37 Attack
My soul must have left my body the moment Carlos walked in because suddenly, my life flashed in my eyes.
Carlos didn’t say a thing, he stood there, observing me. I can tell many things are going on in his mind right now and one of them might be ‘ways to kill Nala’
Even in his absolute silence, I could feel him yelling at me. Screaming and probably even hitting me. This is gonna be my end. Carlos might just kill me today.
My heart kept racing as I kept my gaze on him while my mind was battling with fears of what he would do to me.
Carlos already warned me about this but I did it anyways and worst is, this time I found something and he knows I did.
A minute passed by and Carlos still didn’t move from his position nor did he say anything. I badly wanted to speak… to say something that would explain the whole situation but I don’t think anything I say could calm Carlos’s mind especially since he’d already caught me red handed.
After what felt like forever, Carlos began walking toward me—slow, deliberate steps, his eyes locked on mine with a deadly intensity. The closer he came, the further I backed away, my legs trembling beneath me.
He stopped at the desk. His gaze dropped for a split second, landing on the open file. His expression darkened. He now knows. He knows I’ve read it.
I’m gonna be in so much trouble. Carlos will kill me.
His gaze moved back to me. His jaw clenched tightly, and he said "You went through my stuff." His voice was low but dangerous.
"I.. umm.." I rambled, my heart racing faster than usual "I can explain." I whispered, barely able to breathe.
His eyes turned cold, "No!" He growled stepping closer
I backed into the wall, the cold surface pressing against my spine. Carlos moved again, now just inches away, his breath harsh and sharp like a warning. Like a sign that he could kill me.
I didn’t know what to say to calm the situation so I said the first thing I could think of. "I swear I didn’t see anything," I blurted clearly making things worst. I shouldn’t have lied but I panicked.
Carlos growled and slammed me back against the wall. "Don’t fucking lie to me!"
My heart dropped like a stone. Thunder roared through my chest.
"I’ve already seen everything. You fucking went through my things!" His hand smacked the wall beside my head.
I flinched, terrified of him.
"I warned you about this didn’t I?" He asked. That was clearly not a question but a statement, one that I can’t dare to answer.
He pressed further "You think you are smart, don’t you! You think you can sneak around without me knowing don’t you!" He questioned in disgust "Answer me!" His voice roared in my ears.
I opened my mouth to answer, but the words stumbled. "I… um… I—"
"You fucking what?" He growled, angrily.
I looked down, trembling, my pulse racing uncontrollably. I needed to speak, but fear was choking the truth inside me. And yet… this might be my only chance. This might be the only time I could get my answers.
Despite being scared, I lifted my eyes to his.
"Who is Erica?" I asked, my voice soft but steady.
His expression shifted, barely perceptible, but I saw it—the flicker of shock. He definitely didn’t expect me to speak up.
I stepped into that crack. "I read a file about her. She looks exactly like me. So who is she?"
I fought to sound brave, but inside, I was crumbling. He could do anything to me but I had to show him I was strong.
Carlos said nothing, so I kept going.
"Am I Erica? Is she my twin, my clone? What the hell is going on, Carlos?" My voice rose.
Still, he didn’t say anything.
At this point, his silence was no longer intimidating, it was infuriating. "I’ve been here for a month, believing you trapped me here because of your selfish wants. But this—"
I pointed at the file as I continued "This tells a different story. You know who I am, you’ve been stalking me. This is a whole mission- something I never saw coming and still don’t understand."
I pushed away from the wall and marched back to the desk, grabbing the file.
“It’s filled with photos of me… but it’s labeled Erica. So tell me, who is Erica? And why does this file have my face under her name?”
Before I could say anything else, his hands wrapped around my waist and slammed me back into the wall. "You don’t fucking dare ask me questions!"
"Do you think I want to be asking them?" I shouted, my voice raw. "Tell me the truth, Carlos! Who is Erica, and why does she look like me?"
He slammed his palm on the wall again, making me jump. Then he leaned in, his face inches from mine, his voice a low growl.
"First of all, you don’t have the right to question me. Secondly… you’re going to regret going through my things."
His eyes met mine again, and his voice dropped, heavy with something between warning and regret. "After this… you’re going to hate me more than you ever have." He grabbed my hand and yanked me forward, dragging me out of the room like a bag.
"Carlos, let me go!" I screamed, struggling to free myself, but his grip was iron.
He hauled me through the hallway while I kicked and twisted, desperate to break free. It was useless.
When we reached the bedroom, he shoved the door open and flung me inside like I was nothing more than a discarded object. I hit the floor hard, my palms scraping against the tiles as I turned to face him.
His eyes were dark, burning with fury. His voice cut like ice. "I hate hurting you, Nala… but you left me no fucking choice."
My chest rose and fell in uneven gasps as he stepped closer. I backed away on my hands, crawling, terrified. His shadow loomed over me, and just as he reached for me…
Bang!
A gunshot rang out from outside. Carlos froze mid-step, his face twisting in alarm.
Bang!
Another shot. Closer this time.
He rushed to the window and yanked the curtain aside, peering through. A second later, he spun around, eyes wide with panic.
"We’re under attack. We have to move. Now."