Those are the same thugs who harassed Nana. The men who claimed that his father was in debt. The trio came out from the worn-out gate as if it were their home.
Everything had been hectic she totally forgot about this problem. Damn these loansharks.
They shouldn't be here, not inside their house, that's illegal. She's questioning the actions of the perpetrators in her head until fear creeps into her skin. What if she went inside without knowing there were trespassers? She can hear the thumping in her chest like it's just beside her ears.
They did not look like the kind who would just exchange words.
She clasped her hands together to stop them from shaking and held them against her mouth to keep any noise from escaping. She heard a couple of clicks followed by a loud puff on the other side of the wall.
Her hearing is the only thing functioning right now since her eyes were shut a long time ago. They were talking casually in front of their home. She didn't want to hear any of it but she was forced to anyway. She wished they just left right there.
"The oldie was hospitalized. I thought we would get the granddaughter at least. We can have this settled if we get her signature." The tone is more irritated than disappointed.
"Yeah, yeah." The man answering was dragging his words. "Find the time she usually gets home. Have someone look after this place starting tomorrow." She recognized the voice once more. The hoarse voice from before. Looks like he's the leader.
"I can get the hospital name boss, why don't we just wait there?"
Lucy felt a jolt at the mention of the hospital and her arms started to tremble, she embraced herself to stop the involuntary shaking and braced herself for the worst.
*Slap*
She almost jumped at the sound. Thankfully, she held herself tightly in place before it happened.
"This idiot! Do you know how many CCTVs there are in those areas? Besides, how can boss just let this off with just a signature? I bet we can rip off something more from the granddaughter. If she's pretty we can even have a good time." There were chuckles in between the last words.
"A kidney would be better." The rough authoritative voice cuts through casually.
"Oh, C'mon boss? You'll prefer a kidney over the taste of a woman?" It was a playful tone.
"I can get that in the pub." Another puff. "And a kidney is worth a few trips." There's a flick and the sound of the stump of the feet. "And that's why you need to learn math."
"Haha, our boss is so smart." There's light clapping in the air. "But wouldn't it be fun boss, you know, the granddaughter might be pretty." She can feel teasing in his voice, it's disgusting.
"This psycho… haha. We'll see. If the girl is pretty." The laughter was too easygoing.
She felt nauseous and sick.
Lucy stayed hidden for what felt like ages until the voices talked more about topics she couldn't comprehend anymore and footsteps began to move further and further away.
When silence fell completely, she opened her eyes, her vision now fully adjusted to the partial darkness. All she can see is the ground in front of her, tainted by occasional light coming from the hollows of the wall.
She's panting, trying to catch her breath. Her heart still drumming in her chest.
In her shock, she didn't notice how hard she was gripping her arms, her fingers digging into her flesh. If she wore longer nails it would have left scratches for sure. The pressure had been there for too long that she felt more pain instead of relief when she finally released them.
Everything else felt numb, her head, her stomach, her legs. She had to force herself to dive forward so she could start to get up, the soil damping her fall. Her body didn't want to move but her mind knew she had to get out of there.
She peeked behind the walls, before finally taking steps outside. She heard the men leave long ago but she had to make sure.
The woman did not dare go inside the house anymore and just ran in the opposite direction the men disappeared to.
She kept darting, dashing without direction. Her legs and lungs were in pain a long time ago but she can't stop moving, walking slower when it gets too much, but never stopping, and dashing again.
Should I go to the police? The hospital? To Uncle Fred?
She was having a panic attack.
From the neighborhood streets she got into the larger roads.
She knew the place, the buildings were familiar, she walked this path every day, but it didn't matter. It all felt new to her. She doesn't feel safe. She's overwhelmed. The men's words ringing in her head.
A discomposed woman frantically making her way to the streets — a recipe for disaster.
In her panic, she missed the sign to stop when she bumped into a crowd and pushed her way through the pedestrians waiting for the go light. She forced herself in until she felt the path open up and there were no more bodies pushing against her.
There were shrieks and shouts but her head was too full of the men's voices she didn't notice.
A white beam flashed on her left and she froze in the middle of the street.
*BEEEEEEEEEEEEP.*
The light stopped a few steps away and all the energy left her body. Her legs gave out. The noises finally hitting her eardrums.
"Lucy?"
She heard a familiar voice. She looked but the car beam directly hit her eyes. She tried to cover the light with her hands to find the voice. Narrowing her eyes in an effort to see better, it was all in vain as the brightness didn't seem to budge, until a shadow cast in front of her.
She tried to make out the shape of the shadow, it was a man. A tall man.
"Owen?"