~CHAPTER 5~
"Got you," Mr. Tattoo sneered, while I brought my hand up to his hand that was dragging my hair, trying to pry his fingers loose.
But he suddenly pushed me hard to the ground, and I fell face first, the wind knocked out of me.
I tried, scrambling to get my footing, and instantly, I was picked back up, and a hard slap was sent straight to my face.
The force of the blow sent me crashing to the ground again with my head spinning.
"Get up!" Mr. Tattoo shouted, making me flinch. I slowly struggled to my feet, my eyes frantically scanning the surrounding area for something, anything that could help me defend myself.
My face was burning with pain, and I could feel a lump already forming on my cheek where Mr. Tattoo had slapped me.
My hands were wildly moving around, feeling the rough forest, searching for a rock, a stick, or anything that could be used as a weapon.
And then, my fingers closed around something - a branch, about the size of my forearm, lying on the ground. I quickly gripped it tightly, my heart racing with fear and adrenaline. I was not going to go down without a fight.
"I said get the fuck up!" Mr. Tattoo exclaimed and he dragged me back up again.
But this time, he didn't expect a hard blow to his head with the branch. I swung it with all my might, feeling the satisfying crunch of wood against bone.
Mr. Tattoo's tight grip on me loosened, and I used the opportunity to give another blow, aiming for harder this time and he grunted in pain.
I didn't waste any time, spinning around and running like my life depended on it - which it did. The moment Mr. Tattoo regained his composure, I was dead.
I could hear him roaring behind me as he gave chase. I ran as fast as my skinny legs could, my heart racing and my lungs burning.
The branch was still clutched in my hand, and I was ready to use it again if necessary.
"Bang!.... Bang...bang...bang!" Gunshots rang out, the sounds shattering the forest silence like a thousand shards of glass.
- it wasn't aimed at the sky like the last time. This time, Mr. Tattoo was definitely trying to kill me. I could feel his malice and his intent to harm and that made me run harder than before.
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Just when I thought I couldn't run anymore, I saw lights up ahead, I ran some more minutes and I burst through the trees.
I realized that I had run towards the roads on the other side of the forest. The lights were from the cars whizzing by with their headlights casting across the pavement.
I couldn't hear Mr. Tattoo's voice again nor could I sense his presence lurking nearby. Maybe I had managed to shake him off my tail by running and changing directions in the dark forest.
I continued to run towards the road trying to stop a car. I quickly dropped the branch, not wanting to seem threatening, as I waved my arms wildly, trying to flag down any car that would stop and help me.
The headlights of the passing cars illuminated the desperation etched on my face. I felt like a wild animal fleeing from a predator, and I knew I had to keep running until I was safe.
I saw a sleek sedan with tinted windows approaching, and my instincts told me to run away from it and I did.
Something about the tinted windows made me feel uneasy like I couldn't see what was lurking inside.
I would feel a whole lot safer if the car wasn't tinted if I could see the face of the driver and gauge their intentions.
I tried flagging down other cars, waving my arms wildly, and shouting for help. But none of them seemed to pay attention to me, or maybe they just didn't care.
They whizzed by, one after another, leaving me feeling more and more desperate.
I was starting to lose hope, wondering if anyone would ever stop to help me when I spotted Mr. Tattoo and some other men coming out of a car parked by the side of the road.
Mr. Tattoo's eyes were on me as he raised his gun and shot straight at me, but just as the bullet was about to hit me, a car passed by and took the hit instead. The sound of glass shattering was heard.
Without hesitation, I used the distraction to run as fast as I could down the road, but the car that Mr. Tattoo and his men had emerged from began to chase me hard.
It wasn't too long before I was cornered, the car blocking my path in front of me, while Mr. Tattoo and his men closed in on me from every angle, blocking every escape route I had.
I spotted some civilian cars that had stopped at a distance, with their occupants watching the scene unfold. But none of them got out of their cars to help me; they just sat there in their seats, watching me like I was some spectacle.
Some even had their phones out, recording the scene.
I watched in dread as Mr. Tattoo walked closer to me, his eyes blazing with fury but his face had a few streaks of blood trailing down from the side of his head, where I had used the branch to hit him in the forest.
I remembered the branch I had used and a small spark of satisfaction flared up within me. But it was quickly extinguished by the realization that I was now at his mercy.
"I would so much enjoy killing you," Mr. Tattoo's sadistic voice said before something hard struck me at the back of my head.
The impact was tremendous, and I felt my brain rattling inside my skull. Everything went dark, and I was knocked out cold, instantly.
My last thought was how my life was a mess and unforgiving.