Chapter hundred and forty

Chapter 140

Oliver

It took only two seconds for Ron's words to fully settle in. The asshole had planted explosives all over the warehouse.

The fire hadn't gotten here yet but I could already smell the smoke. I heard screams from outside the door causing me to swallow down hard. I didn't want to imagine what must have caused those screams.

Ron was surely creative with his torture. He'd brought back my worst nightmare. He trapped me in the same room as I'd been two decades ago and set the exact scenario as it was back then. Fire. My biggest fear.

But I wasn't that Oliver Kang anymore. And Ron definitely didn't know my biggest fear now. Losing Dallas.

I had lived through this nightmare once and I would make sure to survive it a second time. What I hadn't lived through was a world where Dallas didn't exist in.

I had no intention of witnessing what that would look like. The ordinary thought of it made the panic slowly rising in me die a quick death.

I darted my gaze around the room I'm search of anything that could break open the door. I found nothing useful. Only a single chair that would probably break on impact. I didn't have enough bullet to shoot the door open.

Just when I was about to risk it and shoot the door knob, my eyes caught a tiny silvery thing on the floor. Paper clips. I didn't ponder on the reason it was here, I picked it and began picking the lock.

I had done some morally questionable things in my short existence, but I've never picked a lock. It took a few trials and errors but I finally got the door.

By the time I got out of the room, the fire had spread widely. The smoke was so thick that I couldn't get a breath down. I coughed repeatedly as I inhaled a large amount of smoke.

The screams had subsided to and I didn't see any of my men. I tried not to think about what that meant.

I couldn't detect any smell of burnt flesh or blood, but it didn't offer me any relief. There were so many horrors they could have gone through. And all this was happening because of me. Again.

I was so sick and tired of people getting hurt because of me. I needed to put an end to this. But first I need to find my way out of here.

Finding the exit was more difficult now that the fire had engulfed everywhere. It was a miracle that I hadn't been caught in it.

No matter how hard I was repressing, I couldn't stop the images of twenty years ago from resurfacing. And now that I was busy dodging falling poles of fire, I couldn't focus on not thinking about it.

The images of the past and the present bled into each other, making my mind become disoriented. I couldn't tell the difference between what was real and what was only a figment of my imagination.

One tiny detail Ron added to the renovations, he made everywhere look exactly like it did twenty years ago. It was like reliving the experience all over again.

As I neared what was supposed to be the exit, I heard Mandy's voice as she screamed in agony. I didn't know why she was screaming only that I felt relief at the sound.

It meant I was no longer at the receiving end of her torture. She would no longer touch me against my will. She would no longer call me hers.

My vision became blurry but I forced myself to continued walking. I heard my father's insistent voice behind me as he shoved me forward, urging me to run faster. To escape the fire and run to safety.

I had never heard such fear in my father's voice nor have I ever seen him with a gun until now. So I heed his words and hastened my steps while he followed constantly shooting at something or someone behind us.

I didn't know why he was shooting or what he was shooting at. Just that I didn't feel frightened at the sound. I felt safe each time I heard him shoot. It was the first time I'd felt this safe after days of being constantly touched against my will.

I heard another familiar feminine scream. It belonged to one of Mandy's friends. The ones who had delighted in taking turns on me. I didn't know her name. I had been too busy screaming at them to stop their harassment to learn their names.

I didn't feel any shred of pity at the sound of their screams. They hadn't taken pity on me when I screamed.

We finally got to a part of the warehouse where the fire hadn't consumed yet. I didn't know what room we were in. Mandy or her friends had never let me out of those binds.

I finally got a good look at my father. The only source of light here was the moonlight cascading in through the cracks in the ceiling, but I could see my father's face clearly. Exhaustion weighed heavily on him but he managed a smile when our eyes met.

“My boy,” he sighed, relief washing over his face, as if we weren't trapped in a warehouse on the brink of exploding into smithereens.

He tugged me closer to himself and hugged me tightly as if he was afraid of letting me go. He held me so tightly that I could barely breath. But I didn't mind. I didn't mind this touch. It didn't make me nauseous. It was comforting.

At fourteen, I was almost as tall as him so he wasn't crushing me. I needed the hug.

“I'm so sorry, my boy. This is all my fault. I brought this upon us.” His voice cracked as he spoke. “I should have protected you and your mother. I should have shielded you from this. Please forgive me, Oliver.”

Those were his last words to me. He had asked for me to forgive him. I wanted to tell him it wasn't his fault when I caught sight of a hooded figure pointing a gun at us. At me.

I wanted to scream and run from the man's shot but my father was faster. He turned just as the figure pulled the trigger and took the bullet for me.

He collapsed face down, still holding me tightly to himself. I couldn't scream. I couldn't do anything except stare blankly and hope the liquid currently soaking my chest was water.

But I knew it wasn't. I didn't so much as blink or attempt to move the lifeless body away from me. I didn't try to move as the father finally spread into the room.

I simply closed my eyes and waited for it to take me.
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“Do you think he's going to wake up soon? He's been unconscious for so long.” I heard a familiar voice but I didn't have the strength to figure out who it belonged to.

“It's not been that long. The doctor said he passed out from shock mostly and that it's nothing serious.” I heard the other voice.

Wait… those voices belonged to my friends.

But they hadn't been at the warehouse. I tried to open my eyes but felt pain radiating throughout my body.

I finally managed to get it open. Sure enough, not more than five feet away, Ethan and Xavier hovered over my body.

It took me a whole minute to realize I was in a hospital ward. And another minute before my friends to notice I was awake.

How had I ended up here? The last I remembered I was at the burning warehouse. Had I imagined everything that happened?

“Thank God, you're awake.” Ethan sighed with relief.

“What happened?” I asked and tried to sit up. My side barked with pain but I ignored the pain. I needed to know how I ended up in a fucking hospital ward.

“What happened was that you were being an asshole as usual and didn't listen to anyone.” Xavier snapped, his face radiating with rage.

“Calm the fuck down. He just woke up.” Ethan glared at him.

“You weren't the one who had to hurl his unconscious body out of a burning warehouse so don't tell me to calm down.” Xavier snapped again.

I had no idea what had gotten him so mad but it must have been really bad. Xavier was rarely angry.

Ethan turned to me.
“You passed out at the warehouse. Luckily, Xavier got there in time and managed to carry you out before the fire consumed the whole place.” He explained.

“The men that went with me?” I asked.

“Are all alive. One sustained a few injuries but he's been treated right now so you don't have to worry.”

I loosed a sigh of relief. Maybe I had made up the screams I'd heard were only my imaginations.

“Then why do you look so mad?” I asked Xavier.

“Because I found memory card in my car right after I went in to get you out. It was a recording of you trapped in that room when the father started and how you were struggling to get out. It ended when you passed out.”

I knew who his anger was directed at now. I hadn't noticed another camera in the room when I was in. But I had been distracted talking to Ron.

I knew he sent the recording as a taunt and a warning that he could do worst if I didn't listen to him.

“What happened in there?” Ethan asked.

I told them everything Ron said in the vaguest way possible, including the ultimatum he gave me.

“How long was I out?” I asked.

“Three hours.” Ethan replied.

“Which means you have thirty three hours to engage his daughter.”

“No,” I inhaled sharply, “to find Dallas.”