CHAPTER 4

          The stairs looked like they would never end, she couldn't use the elevator, the place was crawling with hoodlums, they made sure to block every exit. Cornered, trapped, it was run or get caught, and Alice wasn't prepared for the latter. She was exhausted, scared, fearful, that her attackers would find her, she couldn't think, she couldn't hide, there was a threat on every side, she imagined what they would do to her, her heart raced, her mind flooded with morbid images, they were monsters, in, and out, she had to get out, there was the door, the one exit that hadn't yet been blocked, she could see them, parading the halls, searching for her, like hounds, following a scent, she closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and sprinted for the door, it was only a few feet away,  but they had seen her, they followed, they yelled, they tore through the crowd, this was it, the second that would determine what happened next, she reached for the door, swung it open with all her might and fell on the other side, she was safe, she got the better of them. Alice wouldn't have stopped running, if only she knew, that right there was where they wanted her to be, a firm grip pulled her back, throwing her against the SUV that was parked by the road, she felt something snap, might have been a dislocation, her head banged, her eyes dimmed , the figure was a blur, but one thing was sure, whoever her attacker was, he had her at gun point, suddenly the chill became colder, the night darker, and then, a resonating boom!!!,  darkness.

       Her head bled, her eyes closed, her heart stopped, thoughts faded, reality slipped away, she wasn't moving, she was dead.

       This was the second time she had faced death, the adventure was fun, but she would've preferred to win at least once, she was a fan of video games, especially the kind with guns, her enthusiasm about them hadn't changed one bit, they took her head off the horror that had been her life for the past 5 months, everything she had was slowly drifting away, she was loosing herself to depression, it might have been five months, but it felt like five years, she was yet to recover from the shock of that one dreadful night, it had really happened, she had knocked him down, the crowd, the cops, the news, they were real, and they were ready to tear her to pieces.

      She had followed the ambulance to the hospital, too shaken to drive, so one of the police officers drove her down, they had wanted a statement at the station, but she wanted to make sure the man she hit would be okay, the ambulance got to St . Ives  Special hospital, Ikeja, at exactly 11: 00 pm, with Alice's car driving behind them, somehow the word spread, the place was crawling with reporters.

      The news, the gossips, the haters, the clueless, they were all at the gates, waiting for them, she had barely gotten down from the car when the flood fell upon her, her only shield of protection being the police officer that drove her there, he managed to push back the crowd so they could go through.

      The hospital staff was diligent, they acted quickly, and in less than two hours the man was breathing again, she was relieved, but it was'nt over, as a matter of fact , it had only begun. Alice knew they would find alcohol in her system, but her worries were bigger than that, she flinched at the thought of having almost killed a man, goosebumps crawled all over her skin, and she was so lost that she barely even noticed the police officer, who currently questioned her, he was a tall, dark skinned man, muscular looking, yet with an easy attitude, the questions ranged from why she was on top speed, where she had been that night? if she was drunk ? ( as if a drunk man would know when he is drunk) she couldn't bear it anymore, and suddenly, without answering any of the questions, she let her emotions out, she sobbed, and sobbed, the tears flowed freely, she was inconsolable, her pain was real, and anyone with eyes could see that she was broken, distraught, and pained.

      It was no use carrying on with the questioning, she had to calm down first, Bruce, the officer in charge of questioning her, took the liberty to get her a glass of water, with the intention that it might go some extent to keep her calm, it did (but only barely). Bruce seemed like a genuinely nice guy, he assured her she would be okay, and that she could confide in him, he was the first sensible man she had met that evening, and every other evening since.

      The test came out positive of course, but that was the least of her problems. The hospital called, the man was stable, he was alive, that was the good news, the bad news was he had broken his left leg, fractured his right arm, and suffered a number of bruises, some worse than others, but that was only part A of the bad news, part B was that his family members were at the hospital, and they were ready to bring hell.

       As expected, it all ended in court, they sued her for all her savings, the judge supported them, insisting that driving under the influence was a crime, and as such she hardly had a say.

       She lost her money, her name, her mind, in short, she had nothing left. The studios rejected her, and as usual, so did the world of so called friends who had only liased with her for the benefits.

                    PRESENT. DAY

       Dinner was going well, her trauma hadn't affected her culinary skills one bit, she still couldn't cook to save her life, as the smell of burning rice made it's way to the living room Alice pressed pause and raced to the kitchen, where the dinner was half toast, and the white rice was now black and white rice. Just when she cursed herself for having destroyed the meal, there was a loud banging on the door, followed by another, and another, she couldn't help but worry, this was an unpresidented hour for a visit, and she wasn't expecting anyone.

      Whoever it was, he clearly wanted to get in by all means, she quickly reached for the kitchen knife, that was only inches away from her, she tip toed to the door, prepared to strike if the uninvited guest was in any way a harm to her, the banging continued, though not as loud as the first time, she suggested doing anything a person in her situation would do, she made a barely audible inquiry.

    " Who is it ? who is there ? "

       There was no answer, and the banging had suddenly stopped, she pressed her ears against the door, hoping to hear something, anything, a foot step, or a cling, but there was nothing, not a sound, there was no way she could ignore the door, going to bed wasn't an option, it would only give the intruder an avenue to sneak in and possibly murder her in her sleep. No, she would face it, if the worse comes, she would plung the knife into his heart, she took a deep breath, tightened her grip on the knife, and then she heard it again, one more time, it was a thud, someone was definitely there, without allowing the echoes of reason to increase her fears, she pulled the door open, but what she saw made her eyes widen, her jaws dropped, and her heart raced, there he was, the man responsible for the nightmare that was her life for the past five months, covered in blood, unconscious and fighting for his life, what happened next almost made her heart stop, she felt a strong hand round her ankle, she shook, and felt icy cold down at her stomach, then with all the strength he had left, he raised his face to meet hers, blood stained his face, and his eyes were as red as that of a mad man, he tried to say something, and the words that came out of his mouth next made her skin crawl. "

    " Help me !"

    With that he let go of her, his face dropped on the ground,  now covered with blood, she stood there, speechless, clueless, and scared half to death, this wasn't a prank, nor was he a star in one of her movies, it wasn't a video game, this was real, the blood was real, he was really unconscious, there were only two options left now, she would have to help him, or watch him die .

Once again thanks for following, find out what happens next on chapter 5 of MARRED.👍

    Hey guys 😁, thanks for reading, I hope you have really enjoyed the book so far, chapter 5 and other subsequent chapter are premium chapters, but don't worry, you can open them by purchasing coins or participating in rewarding activities like adding books to your library and many more like that, looking forward to your reactions on the remaining scenes, have a great time and don't forget to drop a review .