Fight or Flight

Fight or Flight

Maya's POV

I punched Luca in the face and ran.
Blood exploded from his nose as he stumbled backward. I didn't wait to see if he was okay.
I had to get out of here. Now.
I burst through his bedroom door and sprinted down the hallway. My heart was beating so loud I could hear it in my ears.
Right before she died.
Those words kept playing in my head like a broken record.
Luca had been there when my mother died. He'd seen her face right before someone killed her.
Maybe he'd been the one holding the weapon.
"Maya!" Luca's voice called behind me. "Wait!"
Not happening.
I ran faster.
The elevator was too far away. I headed for the stairs instead.
But someone stepped out of the shadows and blocked my path.
Marcus.
"Going somewhere?" he asked.
"Get out of my way."
"Can't do that."
"I'm leaving."
"No, you're not."
I tried to push past him, but he grabbed my arm.
"Let me go!"
"Maya, calm down."
"Don't tell me to calm down!"
I twisted out of his grip and backed away from him.
"What did Luca tell you?" Marcus asked.
"The truth."
"What truth?"
"That you're all liars."
"Maya—"
"That my mother is dead because of you people!"
"That's not—"
"That the woman who raised me isn't even my real aunt!"
Marcus's face went pale.
"He told you about Agent Chen?"
"He told me she's dead!"
"Maya, listen—"
"No! I'm done listening! I'm done with all of you!"
I tried to run around him, but Marcus was too fast.
He grabbed both my arms this time.
"You're not leaving."
"Yes, I am!"
"It's not safe out there."
"It's not safe in here either!"
"Maya, please—"
I brought my knee up hard, aiming for his stomach.
Marcus saw it coming and twisted away, but my knee still caught him in the ribs.
He grunted and loosened his grip.
I broke free and ran for the stairs again.
But Marcus recovered quickly. Too quickly.
He tackled me from behind.
We both went down hard on the marble floor. The impact knocked the wind out of me.
"Sorry," Marcus said, trying to hold me down gently. "But you can't leave."
"Watch me!"
I rolled over and threw a punch at his jaw.
This time I connected.
Marcus's head snapped back, and I heard him curse.
"Maya, stop!"
"You stop!"
I scrambled to my feet, but Marcus was already getting up too.
"This is crazy," he said, wiping blood from his lip.
"You're crazy!"
"Maya, we're trying to protect you!"
"From what?"
"From getting killed!"
"Like my mother got killed?"
Marcus paused. "What did Luca tell you exactly?"
"Enough."
"That's not an answer."
"It's the only answer you're getting!"
I tried to run again, but Marcus stepped in front of me.
"Move!" I shouted.
"No."
"I'll make you move!"
"Maya, you're being ridiculous."
"Am I?"
I grabbed a heavy glass vase from a nearby table and threw it at his head.
Marcus ducked, and the vase shattered against the wall behind him.
"Okay," he said, his voice getting harder. "Now you're being dangerous."
"Good!"
I picked up another vase.
"Put it down, Maya."
"Make me!"
"Don't make me hurt you."
"You already hurt me! All of you!"
I threw the second vase.
This time Marcus didn't duck fast enough. It hit his shoulder and exploded into pieces.
He winced but didn't go down.
"Maya," he said quietly, "last warning."
"Or what?"
"Or I'll have to stop you the hard way."
"Try it!"
Marcus sighed. Then he moved.
He was faster than I expected. Faster than anyone should be.
Before I could react, he had me by the wrist.
But I wasn't going down without a fight.
I remembered everything Agent Chen had taught me. Every dirty trick. Every weak spot.
I stomped on Marcus's foot as hard as I could.
He yelped and loosened his grip.
I spun around and drove my elbow into his ribs.
Marcus doubled over, gasping.
I ran for the stairs one more time.
Almost made it.
Marcus caught me just as I reached the first step.
This time he wasn't being gentle.
He wrapped his arms around my waist and lifted me off the ground.
"Put me down!"
"Stop fighting me!"
"Never!"
I threw my head back, trying to hit his nose.
Marcus moved his head just in time, but I still caught him in the chin.
He stumbled but didn't let go.
"Maya, you're going to hurt yourself!"
"I'm going to hurt you!"
I bit his arm.
Hard.
Marcus yelled and dropped me.
I hit the ground running.
But I was getting tired. And Marcus was just getting angry.
He caught me again before I made it three steps.
This time when he grabbed me, he wasn't careful.
We both went down hard.
Marcus landed on top of me, pinning me to the floor.
"Get off me!"
"Not until you calm down!"
"I'll never calm down!"
I tried to punch him, but he caught my wrist.
Then he caught the other one.
Now both my arms were trapped.
"Let me go!"
"Maya, stop struggling. You're only making this worse."
"I hate you!"
"No, you don't."
"I hate all of you!"
"You're scared. That's different."
"I'm not scared!"
But I was. I was terrified.
Not just of Marcus. Of everything.
My whole life had been a lie.
The woman I'd called mom for fifteen years wasn't my mom.
My real mother was dead.
And one of the men I'd been living with was probably her killer.
"Maya," Marcus said softly, "I know you're upset."
"Upset? UPSET?"
"Okay, more than upset."
"My mother is dead!"
"I know."
"Because of you people!"
"Maya—"
"Because of your families and your wars and your stupid criminal games!"
"Maya, listen to me—"
"She was innocent! She was just doing her job!"
"I know."
"And now she's dead and I'm stuck here with her killers!"
Marcus went very still.
"What did you just say?"
"You heard me."
"Maya, what exactly did Luca tell you?"
I stared up at him. His face was inches from mine.
There was something in his eyes. Something that looked like panic.
"Why?" I asked. "Afraid he told me too much?"
"What did he tell you?"
"Everything."
"That's not an answer."
"He told me one of you killed her."
Marcus's grip on my wrists loosened slightly.
"One of who?"
"One of you. Adrian. Dante. You. Him."
"Maya—"
"He told me my mother was getting close to the truth about the spy."
"What spy?"
"The one feeding information to Isabella Romano."
"Maya, that's not—"
"The one who betrayed her!"
"Maya, stop!"
"The one who got her killed!"
"MAYA!"
Marcus's shout echoed through the hallway.
We both froze.
For a moment, the only sound was our heavy breathing.
Then Marcus spoke again, very quietly.
"What exactly do you think you know?"
I looked up at his face. At the blood on his lip where I'd hit him. At the worry in his eyes.
Maybe it was the worry that made me brave.
Or maybe I was just tired of being lied to.
"I know what you did to my mother," I whispered.