No. 17 Shattered Darkness
“Click.”
In the darkness, the handcuffs on Xiaodie’s wrists snapped open as I turned the key.
She rubbed her sore wrists, her eyes wide with curiosity. “Where did you get the key?” she whispered.
“The fat guy gave it to me when he brought me here.”
I scanned our surroundings, memorizing the layout, and tucked the key into my school uniform pocket.
“They have a mole in our ranks, and so do we. I’m guessing that fat guy is on our side.”
He probably deliberately mentioned killing us to warn me and give us a chance to escape. I had to admit, he was quite professional.
In the bright moonlight, I could make out the outline of a large abandoned factory. Xiaodie and I were on the ground floor, surrounded by the smell of dust and rusting metal. Four-meter-high walls enclosed us on all sides. Only two small openings, one above the main gate and another on the wall to our right, offered a glimpse of the outside world. I also spotted a staircase leading to the second floor, but I couldn’t tell if the door was locked.
“What do we do now?”
Xiaodie’s voice was laced with panic. “There are men outside, armed with guns. We…”
“We can’t go through the main gate.”
I stared at the moonlight streaming through the openings, my mind racing.
Climb over the wall? Even if there weren’t any guards, scaling a four-meter wall without any tools would be difficult. Besides, any noise would alert the men outside.
I had to rely on myself. Huang Yingdie was just an ordinary sixteen-year-old girl. It was a miracle she wasn’t a blubbering mess. I couldn’t expect her to do anything else.
“Hey, Number Six, why are those girls so quiet?”
“I don’t know. I’ll go check.”
Their conversation sent a jolt of fear through me.
Damn it! I forgot about that!
“Yi Yao…”
Xiaodie grabbed my hand, her small body trembling.
“Come with me.”
I heard the sound of keys turning in the lock. Without hesitation, I grabbed her hand and dragged her towards a small cot nearby.
“Click, click, click…”
The door swung open.
“Get in!”
I pushed her under the cot, then squeezed in myself just as the flashlight beam swept across the room.
“Move over. They’ll see us.”
The cot was too small. Half of my body was sticking out. I hissed at her.
“There’s no more space…”
She glanced back at me. “Don’t push…”
“Hmm?”
A questioning voice came from where we had been standing.
They had noticed our absence.
“Number Three! Emergency! The girls are gone!”
“What?!”
Three sets of footsteps approached the cot.
“Search everywhere! The door was locked. They must still be here!”
Three flashlight beams danced across the walls.
We were trapped.
I wrapped my arms around Xiaodie and pulled her close, squeezing myself further under the cot.
“You!”
We were pressed chest to chest. I could feel the softness of her breasts against mine, her rapid breathing tickling my ear.
Were her breasts smaller than Yi Yao’s? How could the mayor’s daughter be less developed? Was she malnourished?
“Are you trying to get us killed?”
She glared at me, her face flushed.
“This is not the time to be picky, okay? Do you want to die?”
Her faint fragrance and the warmth of her body against mine sent a shiver down my spine. My own body, despite being female, reacted in a way that surprised me. I quickly pushed those thoughts aside. “Listen, they’ll find us if we stay here. I’ll watch their flashlights and figure out their positions. When they spread out, I’ll make a run for it and try to take one of them down. You follow my lead.”
She covered her mouth with her hand. “Don’t be stupid… They have guns…”
“Do you want to just sit here and wait for them to find us?”
I said seriously. “Our only advantage is that we’re hidden in the dark. We have to strike first and gain the upper hand. We have no other choice.”
“But you…” She still seemed hesitant. “Are you sure you can beat them? What if they shoot you? What if they catch you?”
“We have to try.”
The flashlight beams outside were moving faster now.
“You can choose to cower here and hope for the best, but I won’t. I have brothers waiting for me back in Upper Capital City. If I escape, at least I’ll be in control of my own fate.”
Yes, even if it seemed impossible, I had to try.
When I first graduated from university, I had no skills or experience. But I went from one interview to another, driven by desperation. If I didn’t find a job, I wouldn’t even be able to afford food. I had no family or friends to rely on. The longer I waited, the higher the interest on my debts would climb.
What if I couldn’t answer the interview questions? What if I didn’t know how to do the tasks assigned to me?
If one company rejected me, I would move on to the next, and the next, until someone hired me. If I didn’t know something, I would learn it. If I couldn’t do it, I would be fired.
That was the mindset that had allowed me to start from scratch and earn my place in the world.
Sometimes, we didn’t have the luxury of hesitation.
Whether it was school or work, time always found a way to drag us forward, kicking and screaming.
“I’m going. Do what you can.”
The three men outside had spread out, each taking a corner of the factory. I released Xiaodie, rolled out from under the cot, and ran towards the nearest man, the skinny one. He seemed like the easiest target.
To my relief, he didn’t notice me approaching. Perhaps my footsteps were too light, or perhaps he was simply oblivious.
I jumped, spun in mid-air, and delivered a powerful roundhouse kick to his head.
“Thud!”
He collapsed without a sound, my kick landing squarely on his temple.
“Who’s there?!”
The other two flashlights swung towards me.
Adrenaline surged through my veins. I dashed behind a pile of crates, keeping an eye on the approaching flashlights.
Wait, where was his gun?
“Come out, little girl! You’re no match for us!”
Two shadows stretched across the wall, flanking my hiding spot. They were closing in.
Which one should I take down first?
I was searching for a weapon when a shadowy figure emerged from the cot and charged towards one of the men, mimicking my earlier attack.
However, the man was prepared. He blocked her kick effortlessly. Xiaodie stumbled, nearly falling.
You idiot!
I grabbed a rock and rushed out from behind the crates, running towards her. I dodged a bullet, then hurled the rock at the man’s face with all my might.
Miss.
He dodged it easily.
Damn it.
We were exposed. I helped Xiaodie up, bracing myself for the worst.
“Haha, it’s been a while since we had some fun. These girls will make a fine snack.”
To my surprise, they didn’t shoot. One of them even took off his shirt, flexing his muscles. “Come on, girls. Are you going to fight together, or one at a time?”
“Um…” I asked cautiously, “You don’t have guns?”
“Guns?”
The muscular man looked confused. “Guns? If we could afford guns, would we be here… kidnapping you two?”
I exchanged a bewildered glance with Xiaodie.
“You should have said so earlier.”
We both assumed a Taekwondo stance.
“So, you’re going to fight together?”
“I can handle you myself.”
I stepped forward and delivered three swift kicks to his head. As he blocked, I spun around and landed a powerful front kick to his jaw. “Crack!” The sickening sound of bone breaking filled the air. The muscular man, all 1.8 meters of him, flew backward, landing three meters away.
To make sure he stayed down, I stomped on his groin.
I turned to face the other man, only to find him already lying unconscious on the ground. Xiaodie stood over him, her stance still perfect.
“Whew… We’re alive.”
I wiped the dust from my face, relieved.
Xiaodie walked towards me, her expression cold and aloof.
“What are you doing?”
I stared at her, confused. She had been cowering in my arms just moments ago, and now she was back to her usual stoic demeanor.
“Nothing. I just want to settle our unfinished business from this afternoon.”
She unclenched her fists, shifting from an offensive to a defensive stance, one hand protecting her head.
“Come on.”
