Flash back (2)

"Kai, go help her up," said the only woman of the trio.

The younger man nodded and approached Yan Shu, who promptly flinched and tried to back away. She couldn't take it anymore. Not only her mother but the whole world seemingly wanted to hurt her.

Noticing her reaction, Kai paused."It's okay sweetie," said the woman with a smile. She pulled Kai back and approached herself. "We're not going to hurt you. I'm Sara, that one is Renji," she said pointing to the middle-aged man, "and this one is our son," she pointed to the younger man.

Yan Shu turned less wary at the sight of the woman. "Y-y-you're really not going to hurt me?" she stammered out the words.

Sara offered her most reassuring smile, trying not to scare the young girl more than she already was. She had always wanted a daughter, but it would be impossible for her to conceive again due to her poor health. That's one of the reasons for her to like Yan Shu as soon as they met. "No one will hurt you, trust me," she said while extending her hand.

Yan Shu looked at the hand, then at the woman, and back at the hand as she hesitantly considered her options. Finally, she decided to trust the woman and took her hand.

"You don't seem to be from around here, are you lost perhaps?"

Yan Shu shook her head. "I'm from another country. I asked the taxi driver to bring me to the nearest airport, but he… he..." She couldn't finish the sentence, and her eyes started eyes began to tear up.

"Okay," Sara tried to comfort her, "no need to say anything else. Come with us, we're gonna help you." After receiving a nod in confirmation, Sara asked Kai to get her luggage from the car.

"You guys go ahead, I'll meet you back home," Renji said, though his gaze remained fixed on the building where the four men disappeared into.

***

Renji, along with his wife Sara, were once social activists, though their methods led them to be labeled as terrorists on Country Y. Sometimes, the best way to do good is to eliminate the bad people, and that's the sort of thinking that put them into trouble.

Not that they only knew how to cause pain, far from that, but one can't hide bad actions with good ones. Save as many people as you want, if you kill someone without justification, then you're going to jail.

They eventually were able to clear their names and returned to Country A where Renji's family, one of the most influential ones in the country, owned a large number of businesses. He eventually took over the family's businesses, while Sara decided to found a hospital.

But despite settling down, Renji never let go of his past connections, and instead expanded them using his family's resources. From law enforcement to the military, he knew everyone of importance. And that's the sort of reputation that made people fear him.

So when he burst into the building and threatened to bury anyone who tried to mess with Yan Shu again, no one dared to talk back. None of them could survive that man's ire.Before leaving, Renji left them an order. "Deal with that taxi driver."

***

Renji returned home to find Yan Shu eating along with his wife and son. Sara in especial made sure that the girl would feel as comfortable as possible, and that's the sort of care for other people that made him fall in love with her.

He met her while they were working on relief efforts after an earthquake. She was a doctor trying to save as many people as possible. By the end of it, he knew that she was the one for him, so he proposed and she accepted.

Thanks to that attitude, Yan Shu remained most comfortable around Sara, but she eventually started to open up to Renji and Kai. Unfortunately, other than the three of them, she would panic whenever someone approached her.