75: THE SOUND OF FEARARIEL’S POV“Who said the two of you could carry out this nonsense in my kitchen?” Mariam snapped at my mom, and I.“Your kitchen?” I raised an eyebrow. “You barely even be here. And by thehouse.”“It’s just about a matter of time before I throw you out.”I chuckled. “Impossible.”“The both of you can leave now!” She snarled.way,this is myMy mother entered the conversation with a calm tone, “I’m sorry miss, but we’re preparing…..“No one said you can talk!” Mariam barked at her.“Don’t you dare raise your voice at her!” I gave Mariam a dark look.She returned the expression. “Just look at this little rat, raising her voice at me like I was her puppet, or something.”“If you want respect. Then you got to be respectful,” I told her. “Don’t think people are going to be smiling at you when you got that disgusting attitude.”“Disgusting attitude?” Mariam laughed. “You went ahead to poison yourself, and put the blame on me. Now you’re saying I got a disgusting attitude?”“You poisoned yourself?” My mom uttered softly, and looked at me. “Ariel, is this true?”“Come on now mother. Why in the world would I do such a thing? Poisoning myself? Hell no.”“Oh shut up now. Enough with the lies,” Mariam spat.“Hey, you need to have some manners,” my mom told Mariam.Mariam burst into laughter. “You’re telling me to have manners? When your daughter right here has none.”“I won’t let you insult my daughter like that, do you hear me?!” My mom’s anger was awakened.“What are you going to do?” Mariam moved closer to my mother. “Your daughter is nothing but a worthless piece of trash,” she said in huhsed tones.My mom, brimming with rage, surprised Mariam with a tight slap. And as Mariam held her face in shock, she received another slap. Then my mom gave her the third one on a different cheek.Mariam gaped at my mother who did nothing but glare at her. She couldn’t believe what just happened.“That is what you get for being disrespectful to my daughter.” My mom picked a knife. “If you try to talk nonsense again, I won’t hesitate to stab you with this.”15 THE SOUND OF FEAR“Okay mom, you got to calm down. That’s enough, that’s enough,” I said, lowering the knife she was holding.After that, we heard a the thunderous sound of a bullet released in the air.Wide-eyed, the three of us exchanged fearful glances, my heart pounding in my chest.“What was that?” I aksed, as I could feel myself getting carried away by fear.“Someone just released a bullet,” my mom said softly.I strained my ears, hoping it was just a stray sound, but my hope vanished when I heard more gunshots, one after another, growing louder and closer. Panic gripped me immediately. I wasn’t going to lie, I was submerging in trepidation.Without a moment’s hesitation, I sprang to my feet, my voice quivering with urgency. “Mom, we need to get to safety! Follow me!”“Ariel, I think you need to relax. Everything will be fine,” my mom said. And then we heard more gunshots.“I don’t think so,” Mariam spoke, and I looked at her immediately.“Look, I don’t have time for a beef right now,” I told her. My expression was cold.Mariam rolled her eyes. “You think I got time too?”We heard more gunshots, and I knew something was definitely not going great outside this mansion.“Come on mom, we need to hide from this chaos.” I grabbed my mom’s hand, and began to tread at a fast pace. Mariam moved behind us.Still holding my mom, I rushed through the elegant hallways. I could hear our footsteps echoing in the mansion. Each step brought us closer to one of the rooms where different books were kept. I used to come here to read whenever I felt bored.As we hurried, we could hear the cacophony of gunshots intensifying, their echoes bouncingoff the walls. Fear twisted my stomach, fueling a desperate need to find refuge.Finally, we reached the sanctuary of the dark room, my mom and I. I slammed the door shut behind us, just as Mariam was about to join us in the room.“Ariel! What was that for?” My mom questioned me in a blaring tone.“What?” I faked a confused face, acting like I had no idea of what she was talking about.“You need to open that door right now and let her in as well.”“But mom..”“No buts. Open it,” my mom’s mode was serious, and her decision was final.“Fine,” I groaned, before opening the door. I glared at Mariam, but eventually shifted backwards, opening the door wide for her to come in. And she did that.More gunshots unfolded/creating more senses of trepidation for us. In the dark room, we could hear the sound of someone slamming the door from downstairs. And at this point, I knew we were not safe. But I hoped nothing bad would happen to anyone in the mansion at themoment.THE CHANGMariam trembled as she fixed her hands around her chest. “What’s happening out there? Who would bring violence to our doorstep?”“I don’t know, but we need to stay calm and stay hidden until it’s safe. We have to trust that help will come.” My mom replied, her voice filled with anxiety.“Yeah, I agree mom.”I nodded. “But we can’t just keep standing here like this.”“What are we going to do then, huh?” Mariam aksed. Her irritating tone caused me to ignoreher.My eyes darted around the room, as I was searching for anything that could offer a sense of security.Bookshelves were all over the place, but I spotted a large wardrobe in the corner of the room. I had totally forgotten that was there.“Quick, let’s hide inside the wardrobe. It’s our best chance to stay out of sight.” I gestured toward the wardrobe.“Are you sure we’re going to fit into that?” Mariam aksed, observing the wardrobe.I shot her an irritated look. “If you don’t want to hide in it. That’s your own cup of tea. Maybe you can find somewhere more safe to hide your annoying ass in.”“Ariel. Please be respectful,” my mom told me. I exhaled deeply, before treading to the wardrobe. The two of them walked behind me.We eventually squeezed ourselves into the cramped space, our bodies pressed against each other. The scent of old clothes filled the air, mingling with the fear. I even wondered who these clothes used to belong to. It was definitely not Luke.I held my breath, but my fear compounded the moment I heard some maids screaming. The gunshots were released downstairs, and it made me feel really uneasy. I had to realize that Riley was still in the house, and her life could be in danger. I quickly burst out of the wardrobe, running to the door.“Ariel, where are you going to?” My mom asked me, she was sort of loud.“Don’t worry about me. Just keep yourself safe,” I answered, leaving the room.ARIEL’S POVI walked slowly, still looking for Riley. My heart raced as the deafening sound of gunshots reverberated through the mansion. Panic gripped her as I had a conscience of the danger that lurked just below. But I was determined to find Riley, no matter what.I cautiously stepped through the corridor, my footsteps muffled by the plush carpet beneath my feet. The air was thick with tension, and I was filled with terror. But I needed to gather the courage. I was not going to let anything bad happen to that young girl.The gunshots grew increasingly louder, their sharp cracks piercing through the air. Accompanied by the desperate screams coming from downstairs, my fear intensified. Each gunshot seemed to echo through my bones, causing my heart to race and my hands to shake uncontrollably.I couldn’t bear to imagine what was happening below, but I knew I had to stay calm and findRiley so I could get her to safety before it was too late. The chaos and terror surrounding me was suffocating, and I could only pray for a way to escape this nightmare.I halted for a minute, closing my eyes in fear. The terror emanating from downstairs was overwhelming. My heart raced and my hands shook as I tried to steady myself. But I knew I couldn’t let fear consume me. I needed to be strong in this moment, for myself and for Riley, whenever shr was at the moment, Gathering my courage, I took a deep breath and slowly opened my eyes, ready to face whatever horrors awalted me downstairs.LUKE’S POVI was at the office, diligently working my way through a stack of documents, when suddenly my phone began to ring. At first, I tried to ignore it and focus on the task at hand, but the persistent ringing became too distracting.I reached over and grabbed my phone, glancing at the caller ID. It was an unknown number, and my mind told me it was that guy who kept on requesting for money.I wanted to ignore the call, but it was too distracting.I was frustrated and annoyed that he wouldn’t give me the time I had asked for. All he seemed to care about was money, and I couldn’t understand why. It made me question if he even had any useful information to offer in the first place. I just wanted some space to think things through, but he wouldn’t listen to me. It was clear that his only motivation was financial gain, and I couldn’t help but get infuriated about this.I had to answer the call. However, to my surprise, it was a completely different person speaking. I couldn’t help but feel a bit taken aback, wondering who could be calling me and why it wasn’t the person I was expecting. My curiosity and confusion grew as I listened to the voice on the other end, trying to make sense of the unexpected call.“Sir, there’s chaos going on in the house,” the person said, and it did sound like one of the maids.“Chaos? What chaos?” I aksed in curiosity.“Some men came and strated shooting, and…”I heard a loud gunshot from the phone, and the call abruptly ended, leaving me in a state of shock. I quickly stood up, my heart blazing as I tried to process what had just happened. Fear and confusion consumed me as I began to recall the words she uttered before the call ended.Chaos at my house? And then that? Something terrible was definitely taking place in that mansion.Without hesitation, I knew I had to go and see what was happening. I rushed out of my office that very moment.ARIEL’S POVI continued to walk, my pace slowed as I noticed that the sounds of bullets had suddenly ceased. The once chaotic and haunting noises had now been replaced by an eerie silence.I cautiously looked around, trying to make sense of what had just happened.Had the danger passed or was it just a temporary lull in the chaos? I couldn’t be sure, but I knew I had to keep moving and find safety as soon as possible.Every step I took felt heavy and uncertain, but I pushed forward, still looking if I could seeRiley anywhere. When I said terrific like this.wanted to get married to Luke, I didn’t request for something1 cautiously walked down the hallway towards Riley’s bedroom, hoping to find her there. However, my search proved fruitless as I discovered her room to be empty. Suddenly, a loud scream echoed from the floor below, causing my heart to skip a beat. I decided to make my way downstairs to see what was going on.I walked down the dark living room, an I saw a group of men huddled together, all holding guns and wearing menacing masks. My heart pounded in fear as I noticed they had Riley kneeling in front of them,Her face was filled with fear and tears were streaming down her cheeks. I could feel my palms getting clammy and my breath caught in my throat as I watched the scene unfold before me. I knew I had to act fast, but my body felt frozen in place.The scene was horrific and shocking. Plus, to add to the already terrifying atmosphere, there were dead bodies scattered all over the living room. I couldn’t help but notice that all the maids who usually kept the place spotless were now lying lifeless on the ground.It was a realization that these men standing before me, were extremely ruthless and heartless The once luxurious and elegant living room was now a gruesome crime scene. My heart ached for these maids.“And who’s this?” One of the men turned to me. The others all set their eyes on me, including Riley.I did nothing but look at them, my body froze and I couldn’t bring myself to move. Seeing Riley in such a vulnerable state brought a deep sorrow to my heart. I couldn’t stand to see someone her in so much pain.It was as though my own heart was breaking alongside hers. I wanted to reach out and comfort her, to ease her suffering, but I felt powerless in that moment. All I could do was stand there and silently offer my support and empathy.“I don’t know, but this cheek is hot,” one of the men walked to me. “Can’t wait to get a taste.” he wanted to touch me, but I slapped him.He slowly looked at me, and I slapped him again. If anything was going to happen, let it happen.“You crazy bitch!” He snarled and gave me a hard slap that caused me to fall down.Fear and panic surged through my body as he climbed on top of me, his weight pressing me down into the ground. I could feel his hands gripping mine, holding them in place as he tried to force himself on me.I fought with all my strength, desperately trying to break free from his grasp. The thought of what he wanted to do to me filled me with terror, and I knew I had to do everything in my power to stop him.But despite my struggles, he continued to overpower me. He was determined to carry out this disgusting feat. I could only hope that someone would hear my cries for help and come to myrescue.And indeed, someone did show up. It was Luke.
