BANG!

  The bullet came tearing through the air at my face. However, this time, I couldn't see the colours. It was so sudden that I don't even know if I saw the dancing warnings of orange and red.

  Suddenly, my left arm slipped. Almost like it moved on its own. I fell flat on my chest. Lali, who was leaning against my back, also fell on top of me.

  Behind us, the bullet pierced the wall. I slowly raised my head and looked at the woman. She was still pointing the gun at me, but her eyes followed the figure of the little girl beside me.

  “Who the fuck are you?” She asked, “Kid, come here! You're safe now.”

  Her voice was very gentle but also firm. However, Lali did not let go of my trench coat. Instead, she pressed her forehead onto my back again.

  I slowly put weight into my hands, pushing myself up from the floor. I stopped almost suddenly when I saw the woman once again point the gun directly at my head.

  I instinctively glanced at my left hand. The perfect black circle was still there. But I did not see any warning signals.

  “ Stand down!” The woman shouted when I tried to lift my knee. “ Come here, girl! Hurry!” She hurried Lali to step to her side.

  Lali simply shook her head in denial. Her eyes shed tears every new second.

  “I'm not your enemy. We were just looking for this girl's mother.” I said slowly as I raised my arms slowly into the air.

  She hesitated a moment longer before putting down the weapon, “ Then, who brought me here?” She asked, but I didn't understand whether she was asking me or to herself.

  I stood back up without losing another second,“ Him.” I said.

  The woman turned around, making her black her spin in the air. She stood still for a moment when she saw the fat, half naked man sitting against the wall.

  “You…” The woman whispered.

  Jug?r's eyes widened as sweat began to trickle down his face , “ When did you wake up, Margaret?” He asked.

  ‘ This lady’s name is Margaret?’

  “ Not soon enough.” She said,

  The woman, Margaret, raised her gun and pointed it at Jug?r. Jug?r glanced at me and Lali, then back at Margaret.

  ‘ Wow. It's my first time seeing a person getting shot.’ For some reason, my heart beat grew. But it suddenly died down when I felt a small hand squeezing my hand.

  Lali held my hand and looked at the unfolding scene in front of us.

  ‘ You shouldn't let a kid watch this!’ I heard the voice of a woman inside my head. Before I knew it, my body sprinted towards Margaret.

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  The moment she pulled the trigger, I lifted her elbow, causing the shot to go off track and hit the roof instead. Dust fell down to the floor from where the bullet made a hole.

  “ Son of a fucking bitch!” Margaret cussed. She swung her arm back. Her elbow connected well with my jaw.

  I stumbled backwards, holding my jaw with my hands, “ There is a..child here.” I grunted between the words I said.

  Margaret glanced at Lali before clicking her tongue. She turned back to look at Jug?r, who remained silent. She lifted her foot and swung it back before bringing it back to Jug?r. A clean hit to his nuts!

  “Owwwrff!” Jug?r grunted in pain. Margaret however had a disgusting look on her face rather than a pleased expression of getting to kick in the balls.

  ‘ Nackir and thugs were really happy when they kicked mine!’ I couldn't help but compare the strength of mine and Jug?r's balls. At least I didn't cry like a child.

  “ You haven't answered.” Margaret said.

  “Huh?” I didn't understand what she was talking about.

  “ Who are you?”

  “ Alifaan Cordi.”

  “ That's not what I meant. I mean who are you to help the girl find her mother?”

  “ A good gentleman with a sense of justice.” I answered, holding back my pride in it.

  Margaret looked up and down at me, “...a gentleman?” She whispered.

  Lali quickly hid behind me and slightly took a peek at Margaret. Margaret smiled slightly when she saw that.

  “ Hi, I'm Margaret Shauzhinger. What's your name?” She asked.

  “ I'm Alifaan Cordi.” I said

  “ Jug?r…ugh…Batista.” Jug?r said while grunting from the pain.

  Margaret glared at the both of us, “Not you two.” She said, her voice nothing at all gentle, “ come here, little one.” She called Lali again.

  This time Lali slowly walked towards her, “ I'm… Lali.” She said shyly. Margaret knelt down on the floor and kept asking Lali more.

  Lali would occasionally glance at me and would answer her when I nod.

  “ Where did you and your mom live?” Margaret asked.

  “ Lomere, 5th building at 2nd street.”

  Margaret continued to ask more and more questions and Lali would answer everything except for the things she didn't know.

  I quietly let myself slide down the wall. Sitting on the floor I listened to their conversation. Lali was a bit hesitant at first but after a few minutes she answered more quickly.

  She said that her mother is a Street magician. And they used to live in a shared house of tenants in Lomere. And that her mother would send her to the charity schools that teach at night. And so many other things.

  ‘ poor girl. I didn't know people lived like this in my neighborhood. Most of them just die.’

  Over time Lali started asking questions to Margaret instead. As I listened, I didn't even know when I started smiling.

  Somehow I noticed that Jug?r was also listening to the conversation. But I paid him no heed.

  After a few minutes, Margaret stood up and glared down at both me and Jug?r.

  ‘ I get it about Jug?r but why me!?’ I wanted to ask her that but…. that'd probably be a bad idea.

  “ You! Why did you take her?” Margaret asked. She looked me in the eye, expecting an answer.

  ‘ wai-wait a minute! Why are you asking me!?’

  “ I-I did not-” I couldn't finish before she intervened.

  “Not you. The other asshole.” She said, still looking at me.

  Jug?r locked eyes with me for a brief second before looking back at her, “ I don't know. I-I just saw them taking her to–!”

  As Jug?r was explaining, suddenly we heard a scream from outside. Following the scream, the doors to the inn were blasted open as a huge boom echoed inside the inn.

  “ Now what?” I grumbled silently.

  ‘ One after another keeps coming!’ I wasn't sure I could come out safe. Not anymore.

  The floor and wooden steps creaked as footsteps came closer and closer. Lali stood behind Margaret. I stood close by.

  Jug?r, however, laughed, “ Hahahaha! My daddy has come for you! Nackir must have told him about the monster and the fucking bitch!”

  A chill ran down my spine when I heard that. Why would parents get themselves involved in their kid’s fights.

  Margaret raised her gun at the staircase. I was sure the moment the scarlet-thews show themselves, they would be dead.

  The groans of the stairs came closer. And a head peeked out. Margaret pulled the trigger, hitting the head right at the centre of its eyes.

  The body fell down. But the death of the intruder didn't make me feel safe. Instead, I got even more confused.

  Because, that man was wearing a black checkered coat, representing the police officer Varaden. And that face was of the guards under Jug?r.

  ‘ Why would scarlet-thews kill their own people?’ As I was thinking of reasons, a man wearing a yellow shirt and pantaloons appeared. Followed by three others who wore shirts and pantaloons.

  They looked nothing alike, except for the tattoo on the right of their face covering their right eye. The simple three lined tattoo runs vertically down from their eye to neck.

  “ Ain't your papa coming to see you, Jug?r.” The one wearing the yellow jacket said, “ Put your gun down, sergeant.”

  ‘ It's not Jug?r's lackeys?’

  Right after he warned Margaret, the three others took out their guns and aimed it at us. I took a small step back and glanced at Jug?r.

  He was petrified! His mouth half open and eyes wide as it could be. He has his palms curled into fists.

  Margaret hesitated till one of them fired a shot into the air. She set the gun on the floor and kicked it with her foot.

  “Good.” The yellow shirt guy said, “ Quite the charming uniform you got there, eh?”

  Lali stood close to Margaret, clinging to her towel. This time she didn't even try to peek at the others.

  The yellow shirt guy walked past me and Margaret and Lali, ignoring me completely and

  knelt in front of Jug?r.

  “ Boss wants to see you.” He said.

  Jug?r stayed silent for a long time before looking at me…

  “Salt rats!” He said.