Chapter 52: Close Call
Liz
I close my eyes and focus and remember what Zander taught me. I use the heel of my shoe to stomp down on my attacker’s foot, and I hear him groan loudly. I use my right elbow and push
it backwards as hard as I can, and it connects with his stomach.
I spin around and lift my knee and I feel it make contact with something. Hopefully his face, if he bent down like I suspect, or even his nuts. The f*****g asshole deserves it. “Help!” I yelled
and tried to feel in front of me to get away. Someone comes running with a torch and shines it my way, nearly blinding me.
“Someone tried to abduct me, I think I hurt him.” I said. I saw the torch focus on the floor and I
looked to see an unconscious man lying on the floor. That’s the guy that was sitting in the
third row, two seats away from me. What the f**k? Why would he attack me like that? I have
never seen him before today.
The lights go on and I adjust my eyes. My jacket was completely ripped open, so I grabbed it and closed it as best I could. The guy is still on the floor and the security guard is handcuffing him. My heart is beating a mile a minute, and I am still trying to catch my breath. Zander and Ricardo come running through the door, and Zander pulls me into his arms.
I immediately calmed down, knowing I was safely in his arms. “Are you okay? What happened?” he asks. “That guy grabbed me and was dragging me away. I did what you taught me and freed myself from his hold.” I said, and his eyes widened. I tell him everything that happened, and he looks at the guy and I can see he is pissed. “I need all his details. The FBI
are on their way. No one leaves this room until they get here.” Zander says, and the invigilators all nod, looking very confused. They are probably wondering what the FBI has to do with this.
The murmurs start up again, and everyone is watching me. Ricardo comes back in with a t–shirt and hands it to me. I throw it on over my blazer, before I take the blazer off. A few minutes later, Agent Perez and a team burst in through the door. He immediately ran over to check on me.
When he is sure I am okay, he goes to speak to the invigilators. I don’t know what they discussed, but I was told I could leave. “I want to finish my exam,” I said, and Zander looked at me. “Are you sure? You are still in shock, my love. Maybe we should have you checked out.” He says, but I shake my head.
“I am really okay, he didn’t get a chance to hurt me. I won’t let that asshole stop me from
+ Point:
Chapter 52: Close Call
realizing my dream. I worked too hard to back out now.” I say, and I hear someone clap their hands, so I look behind me. The older gentleman is smiling at me and clapping his hands. Some of the others join in too, and I can feel my face heat up. I don’t like attention.
Zander nods and I look at the invigilator who is smiling at me. She showed me to sit down. and I did. Zander, Ricardo and the FBI leave the room, and the only ones that are left are me
and my peers. When the invigilators are sure everyone is okay, we are allowed to continue.
They took all our papers away when Zander came in, so they handed them back to us again. I
take a deep breath and square my shoulders, before I pick up my pencil and continue to
answer the questions.
Lunch was served at the three–hour mark, and we were allowed to use the bathroom if we
needed to. The next three hours went by so quickly, and I managed to answer all the questions with a few minutes to spare. When I put my pencil down and flipped my question paper over, I
let out a long breath. I smiled to myself, feeling very proud of what I had achieved.
When we are allowed to leave, Zander is waiting for me in the corridor. I ran straight into his
arms, and he held me tightly. I look around and see that the FBI has left, and it looks like
nothing happened. “Let’s go home,” Zander says, and I nod and follow him outside.
When we are in the back of the car, he pulls me close to him and kisses the top of my head. “I
am so proud of you, my Liz. But are you really okay?” he asks me. “Thank you, Zander, and
yes, I am really okay. I didn’t panic, I remembered what you taught me. I told myself I wouldn’t
let anyone take me against my will again.” I said, and he smiled.
“That’s my girl.” He says and kisses my lips softly. “Do we know who that guy was? He was
writing the exam too.” I say. “Agent Perez is still checking, but we think we know who hired
him.” Zander says. “Martha,” I say and he nods. “Why is she so hell–bent on taking me?” I ask.
“I don’t know Liz, but we are trying to find out. We will get her. She is becoming more desperate now. She will slip up.” he says, and I nod. It was very risky of her to try and take me
in the middle of the day, in a building filled with people. “Where is she getting her information
from?” I asked.
“I was wondering the same thing. I think we may have a mole.” Zander says, frowning, and I
nod and rest my head on his shoulder. But who could it be? “Will I still be able to go write
tomorrow’s exam?” I asked and Zander nodded. “Yes, they are allowing Ricardo to sit in for
your safety. They didn’t have a choice. You nearly got abducted in their facility, by one of their
candidates,” Zander says.
“Did
you threaten them?” I ask and he smirks. “Never, I merely pointed out the law regarding
218
+ Points
Chapter 52: Close Call
such matters. They should know the law, shouldn’t they?” he says and I chuckle. “Yes, they should.” I say and chuckle. “How did you know I was in trouble?” I ask him.
“I saw the guard running towards the exam room, and then I noticed the lights were out. We
heard two security officers talking about the wires being cut. Ricardo and I both weren’t going
to risk your safety, that’s why we came to check on you.” He says.
“You are always my knight, coming to my rescue,” I say, and he chuckles. “This time you saved
yourself. Well done, my Liz.” Zander says. “Now we can start with kick boxing.” I say and kiss
his cheek, before I rest my head back on his shoulder. “Definitely.” He says and I smile.
When we get home, Rosa is waiting at the door. “Are you okay, Liz?” she asks me when I get out of the car. “I am okay, Rosa, don’t worry. Zander taught me how to defend myself.” I say
and she smiles and hugs me. “I am glad. Come inside and tell me how your exam went. I
made lamb pot pie, come have some.” She says and I squeal.
“I was hoping that was what I was smelling,” I said, and went inside. I tell her everything that happened, while I help her set the table. She is still shocked by Martha’s involvement in Zander’s parents‘ death. Though she never liked Martha, she said that Zander’s parents loved
her.
We all sit down and eat together, and it’s so refreshing. The staff have all been made aware of the threats against us. We need to keep them safe too. The only time they don’t join us for dinner, is if Zander wants us to be alone. And when he is working late, I normally wait up to
eat with him.
“Where is Clara?” I asked. I noticed she wasn’t there, but I thought she would at least come eat with us. “She isn’t feeling well, so she is in her room. We took her some soup and meds. It sounds like the flu.” Rosa says. “Should I get Dr. Willis to come out?” Zander asks. “I offered too, but she said she would be okay. I made her some lemon, ginger and honey tea and gave
her some flu medication.” Rosa says.
“I will go check on her after dinner,” I said. “She did say she was going to bed early, but you are welcome to check in on her, she will appreciate it.” Rosa says and I smiled and nodded. After dinner, the others cleaned up, while I went to check on Clara. I knocked a few times, but she
didn’t answer.
The door wasn’t locked, but I didn’t feel good about just going in. But what if she is unconscious and needs help? My worry about her makes me knock once more, before I open the door. She wasn’t in bed, so maybe she was in the bathroom. “Clara,” I said, but got no
answer. Now I am really worried.
3/4
+8 Point:
Chapter 52: Close Call
I knock on the bathroom door and it goes open. I peeked in, but she wasn’t there either. That’s strange. Where could she have gone? She is supposed to be resting. I closed her door and went in search of her. “Do you know where Clara is? She isn’t in her room.” I asked Rosa when
I entered the kitchen.
“No dear, she should be in bed. I left her there and she said she was going to sleep for a bit. Should I call her?” Rosa asks. “Please, I am worried. What if she is sick somewhere and needs help?” I say and Rosa nods and takes out her phone and makes a call. After a while, she looks at me with a frown. “It keeps going to voicemail. Now I am worried too.” Rosa says, just as
Zander walks in.
“What are you worried about?” Zander asks Rosa. “Clara isn’t in her room resting, and her phone goes straight to voicemail. We are worried she may have gotten ill and needs help,” Rosa says. “Then we better check the grounds. She could’ve fainted or worse.” Zander says, and takes the landline and calls the guard at the gate.
“Are you sure? Did she look okay?” Zander asks and i focus on him. “Okay, thank you.” Zander says and hangs up. “Elton said she left half an hour ago, and she looked fine. She still stopped to greet him.” Zander says. That is very strange and a little suspicious. “Maybe she didn’t want to worry us so she went to the doctor.” Rosa says.
“Hmm, maybe.” Zander says and takes out his cellphone and sends a text. He gives me a look and I think I know what he is thinking. I know he is suspicious and so am I, especially after what just happened. But could it be? Could Clara be the mole? I hope not. I really like her.
Nats
#Vote# Have a blessed day everyone. I plan to eat myself into a food coma
