I Will Save You

Joe urged his driver to speed up the car to get home as soon as possible. He had to know how Briana was doing. His breathing seemed to stop as he felt the tension squeezing his chest.

"Can you speed up the car?"

"I'm already driving this car at maximum speed. I dare not do more than this because the police on patrol will surely detect it, and stop us," the man replied with the same tension Joe felt.

"To hell with the police. Briana is all that matters right now," Joe snarled fiercely as he hit the back of the driver's seat.

The man didn't argue. Resigned to Joe's orders, he stepped on the gas pedal until it hit the bottom of the car and there was no space left. The car seemed to fly over the highway, speeding uncontrollably.

***

In the front yard, there was a fierce fight between Antonio's men and Chris's men. Briana hid behind a large tree, watching for an opportunity for her to run, and then entered the house. No one seemed to notice her. Just as she was about to take a step forward, she saw a man walking quickly towards her.

Briana ran fast to avoid the pursuit of the man with the creepy face. Previously, Antonio had managed to save her when she was outside the house. She felt the situation was safely under control. But she was wrong. The man attacked her when she was caught off guard trying to get into the house.

The man managed to pull Briana's body, and dropped her to the ground. He held her legs tight. This time he wasn't going to let her out of his hands.

"Let me go...," Briana shouted as she kicked the man in the face. She exerted all her strength to get out of his grip.

The opportunity came. Briana was finally able to kick the man and hit him square in the jaw. She quickly stood up and ran into her room.

Briana hugged herself tightly to the corner of her room. The sound of gunfire outside was deafening to her ears. It made her sick and scared. Even though she had closed the door to her room tightly and propped it up with a table and chair, she felt her life was still in danger.

Briana lost track of how long it had been when she heard the door of her room being knocked loudly by someone. She stayed where she was. Because she couldn't be sure who was out there.

"Briana .... It's me, Joe."

Briana sharpened her hearing. She chose to remain silent. The man could have claimed to be Joe. She would not be fooled.

Brak! Brak!

Briana jumped in surprise as she saw the door to her room being smashed in hard and several times. The hinges groaned as the door slid open. The man pushed aside the table and chair that had been blocking the door. Briana stiffened, her whole body rigid with fear. She screamed in a shrill voice.

"Hey .... It's me." Joe's voice sounded very soft in Briana's ears.

Briana raised her head. Her eyes were slightly blurred by her tears. Joe's image was faintly visible in the corners of her eyes.

"Joe ...."

"Calm down .... It's safe now," Joe said soothingly. He grabbed Briana's body and hugged her tightly.

"Are they gone?"

Joe nodded. "Antonio and the others managed to throw them into disarray and escape from the house. I'm sure Chris must be disappointed that his efforts failed to get you out of here."

"You can't imagine what I went through today. It was horrible," Briana said quickly. "I thought today was my last day breathing oxygen."

Joe's forefinger touched Briana's lips. "Don't ever think like that. I'll keep you out of harm's way."

Briana believed Joe's words. She could see from the serious look in Joe's eyes. Without a doubt, she could count on Joe whenever and wherever she was.

Briana wrapped her arms around Joe's back. She hugged Joe, seeking refuge there. From now on she would leave her life and death in Joe's hands.

***

In the evening. Joe was talking to Antonio. He evaluated the performance of his men who were able to repel Chris' men.

"After today's events, I want you to tighten security," Joe ordered Antonio. "Every inch of this house, the garden, the pasture, the stables, and everything else will be your responsibility."

Antonio frowned briefly before responding to Joe's order. He endured the pain in his cheek. Part of his face was swollen from the fierce fight with the men.

"Okay, boss. Please forgive us that we were caught off guard today and they managed to get in here," Antonio pleaded while bowing his head. He didn't dare to look at Joe directly.

"I have forgiven you guys. So, you don't have to think about it anymore," Joe snapped.

"Thanks, boss," Antonio replied. "By the way, how is Briana now? She must still be traumatized after what happened earlier."

"I haven't seen her since dinner. She's probably sleeping right now," said Joe.

Antonio didn't speak anymore. He decided to leave Joe's office. Now he really needed time to rest. He wanted to recover his energy that had been drained.

Joe closed the door to his study. He would see how Briana was doing before going to his own room. Briana had had a very hard day today. He wanted to make sure she was okay.

Briana's screams from her room reached Joe's ears. Joe had just climbed the third flight of stairs. His heart was beating fast, making him rush up two flights of stairs at once to reach Briana's room.

Joe opened the door to the room. "Briana!"

Briana struggled on the mattress tangled in the blanket wrapped around her body. Hearing Joe's call made her eyes open. She immediately straightened her back. For a few seconds the girl stared at Joe blankly.

Briana shuddered, then closed her eyes tightly. "I'm sorry," Briana whispered.

Joe sat down beside Briana. He put his hand on Briana's shoulder, soothing her. The girl must have had a nightmare.

"It's okay. What happened earlier must still be on your mind."

Briana didn't answer. From the sudden tension in her body, Joe was sure his guess was correct. He lowered Briana's head, then rested it on his shoulder.

"Tonight I'll sleep here, keeping you company. So you don't have to worry about anything else," Joe said then.

Joe dropped their bodies on the bed. He waited until Briana went back to sleep. After that he began to close his eyes. With his eyes closed, his mind was spinning. He decided that tomorrow he would go to see Chris. He wouldn't let Chris do whatever he wanted anymore.