I Want to Die, But I Am Immortal
Chapter 35: The Hostage

Chapter 35: The Hostage

Adam watched frozen in horror from behind the corner of the wall. The two bodies of the mother and her young daughter lay motionless on the cold floor of the corridor.

His mind was a blank slate a canvas of pure unprocessed shock. He couldn’t think. He couldn’t move. He had tried to save the mother only to watch the daughter die.

He had tried to intervene only to watch them both be slaughtered. He had failed. Twice. In the span of a few fleeting seconds he had failed completely. The professional ruthlessness of these men was something he had not been prepared for. They were a different breed from the thugs and corrupt cops he had faced before. They were a different level of threat entirely. Their actions were precise efficient and devoid of any human emotion.

Before he could even begin to formulate a plan before he could even decide what his next move should be he heard the sound of frantic footsteps pounding down the stairs.

It was Sophia.

She was running her heart filled with a desperate worry for Adam her mind a chaotic mess of confusion from her sister’s panicked shouts just moments earlier. She reached the bottom of the stairs her mind still focused on one thing finding Adam.

And then she saw it. She saw her younger sister Anastasia lying on the floor at the far end of the long corridor a small still form in a place where she should not be.

From his hiding spot behind the jutting wall Adam saw Sophia appear at the top of the stairs. A new wave of dread colder and more potent than anything he had felt before washed over him.

No no no he thought his mind screaming in a silent protest that was drowned out by the pounding of his own heart. Not her. Not now. Not like this.

Sophia didn’t see her mother’s body from her vantage point at the top of the stairs. It was obscured by the angle of the shop’s entrance. Her entire focus her entire world narrowed to the small still form of her beloved sister. She ran forward her mind refusing to accept what her eyes were seeing. She was propelled by a desperate hope that this was all a terrible mistake.

She ran directly into the line of sight of the three masked men. She ran right into the center of the kill zone.

The man at the front the one who had fired both fatal shots without a flicker of hesitation saw her. Adam could tell even from a distance that the man was smiling beneath his mask. A low cruel chuckle rumbled in his chest a sound of pure malevolent satisfaction.

"Listen up boy!" the masked man shouted. His voice echoed in the now deathly silent house. His voice was not directed at the terrified girl standing before him.

It was directed at the empty corner where Adam was hiding. "If you care about this girl’s life if you want her to keep breathing you’ll come out now!"

Sophia who was already terrified by the sight of the three masked men was now completely paralyzed. Her gaze flickered from the men to the still form of her sister and then finally to her mother’s body which she could now see lying just inside the shop’s entrance. The world tilted on its axis.

The solid ground beneath her feet seemed to dissolve into a formless void. She couldn’t move. She couldn’t speak. She couldn’t even draw a proper breath. Her lungs felt like they were filled with concrete.

She couldn’t understand what was happening. Was this a nightmare? Was she asleep trapped in some horrifying inescapable dream from which she couldn’t wake? The three black pistols were all pointed directly at her their dark circular muzzles like a trio of cold unblinking eyes promising a swift and violent end.

Finally her gaze her last desperate hope drifted past the masked men past the bodies of her mother and sister to the corner at the far end of the corridor the corner that connected to the hallway from which she had just come.

And there crouched low to the ground his face a mask of pure unadulterated terror she saw Adam. He was staring at her his eyes wide with a fear that perfectly mirrored her own. He looked as trapped as she felt.

Seeing him there seeing the raw fear on his face the last fragile thread of her composure snapped. The tears she had been holding back finally broke free. They streamed down her face in silent hot trails a testament to her utter and complete despair.

Adam watched her. His heart felt like it was being squeezed in a vise. He saw the tears on her face. He saw the absolute soul-crushing terror in her eyes.

And in that moment he finally accepted his own crushing defeat. This is why he thought a bitter self-loathing voice echoing in the chambers of his mind. This is why I didn’t want to get involved with her. My bad luck my curse my entire wretched existence... it finally targeted her family too. He had tried to protect her.

He had tried to keep her separate from his cursed life. But all he had done was lead the wolves directly to her door. All he had done was bring death and ruin to the only person who had shown him kindness.

He stood up. He pushed himself away from the wall his movements slow and heavy as if he were moving through deep water. He began to step out from his hiding place into the open corridor.

Sophia saw him move. She wanted to scream. She wanted to tell him no. She wanted to tell him to run to save himself to leave her to her fate. But her body wouldn’t obey her. The overwhelming shock the crushing grief the paralyzing terror had taken complete control of her. She was a prisoner in her own mind a silent observer watching a tragedy unfold in slow motion.

Her limbs were like lead her voice a strangled knot of air in her throat. All she could do was watch her eyes wide with a desperate pleading horror as more tears streamed down her face.

She knew with a terrible absolute certainty that if he stepped out into that corridor they would kill him too. Her mouth was open a silent scream trapped within. Her body was frozen. But her mind her soul her entire being was screaming at him to stop.