Chapter-5

JANE

I couldn't let the girls face this alone. I just needed to snatch a gun from one of the soldiers. But how? 

All four of us had our own licensed guns but none of us brought ours tonight. How much more unlucky could this day be?

Cursing our luck in my mind, I hid behind one of the pillars in the hallway, from where I could see the door. I took one of my six-inch pencil-heeled sandals in hand, slipping my foot out of the other one and leaving myself barefoot.

I peeked from behind the pillar and saw one of his men…no, a woman in a black bodysuit and leather pants coming out of the hall, her alert eyes darted around, like a panther looking for its prey. A gun clutched in her hand, she moved like a shadow.

This was my chance. Maybe luck was finally on my side, as she seemed vulnerable to me. Maybe because she was a woman.

She walked forward, with carefully measured steps, in my direction. My heart raced, its beats erratic, as I prepared myself with my makeshift weapon, my sandal in a tight grip.

As soon as she got within my reach, I jumped out from behind the pillar, throwing her off for a moment. 

The momentary shock gave me the leverage as I raised my hand to strike her with my sandal. But she was fast in composing herself and raised her leg, kicking me on my stomach.

Air was knocked out of my lungs from the impact, and I fell on my ass. But I was ready for her instantly. Losing wasn't an option.

She ran towards me while I was kneeling. I turned around on my knee, stretching one leg out and delivered a roundhouse kick on her ankle. 

Her feet gave out and she fell forward, I moved to the side, barely avoiding being crushed by her, as she fell on the ground face first.

I couldn't believe this dress didn't give away after the stunt I pulled just now.

I grabbed her ponytail in a fist and pulled her up, before pushing her up against a wall, keeping us away from the sight of Rosario's men. 

Her hand shot out as she clenched her fingers around my neck, cutting my air supply. But I had a trick up my sleeves. 

I kept her in place with one hand and trapped her legs between mine so that she wouldn't be able to kick me. My airway was being squeezed and I started coughing. It was getting difficult to breathe.

"Come in with me or I'll kill you," she growled, a nerve on her forehead twitched as she gritted her teeth.

"I am…cough…Jane Collins… Cough..cough… he'll kill you…if I die," I spoke in a strained voice and saw her face losing colour.

Her hold around my throat loosened, and I took a deep breath before raising my sandal without warning and stabbing her throat with it.

I heard a whimper and squelch as the heel pierced the soft spot of her throat. I pressed it more, and blood started spurting from her neck and mouth with a gurgling sound, making me cringe. Bile rose from my stomach, my skin crawled while she slid down the wall.

Ignoring the nauseating feeling, I dragged her back to the washroom, picking up my clutch on my way.

I was surprised how I still remembered about the ring in between all the chaos. I never knew I had it in me to kill anyone. But I guess desperate times call for desperate measures.

I removed her blood-stained top, staining her face and hair with the blood as she lay there, dead. I got out of my outfit and put on her bodysuit, ignoring the sticky feeling of blood on me.

I removed her pants next and put them on before putting my dress on her. Removing the ring from the clutch, I slipped it into the pants pocket. Next, I grabbed her gun in one hand and put my clutch, along with my phone and jewellery, on the sink counter.

Rushing out of the washroom, I slowed down only when I reached the banquet hall's door. 

By this time, I was completely numb. There was no fear, doubt, panic, nothing. It was like my body had forced itself to cope with the situation and let me take the reins.

I raised my hand that was holding the gun to the side of my face so that they wouldn't see me and entered the hall, avoiding making any noise. 

As I slowly made my way further, pressing my body to the wall, to where Sheena and Sofia were being held at gunpoint, my eyes locked on him. 

The fun atmosphere of the banquet had turned into complete chaos, danger glaring from every corner. All the guests were lying on the ground, unconscious.

This was my chance. I could shoot him right here, right now. I was good at shooting.

A sense of determination filled me as I tightened my grip around the cold metal, and slowly raised my hand. My hands and feet went cold as the pressure of ending it once and for all settled on me.

"Find her, fast. I want her here, right now," Rosario's angry voice boomed as he looked at his men standing everywhere with guns aimed at Sofia, Sheena and Amber.

He was looking for me.

My hands trembled a little. But before I could lock my aim on his head, like a slow-motion video, his head turned to me, and my hand froze mid-air.

A glimpse of shock crossed his face before it contorted into a sinister smirk. His soldiers turned to me in less than a second.

I needed to act fast. Even before I could think this through, I turned the gun and pressed it to the side of my head. On cue, each one of his soldiers stopped where they were. It looked like the time froze.

"What are you doing?" Sofia screamed, struggling against two men who were holding her in place.

The fear returned with full force, turning my stomach into ice, and my heart was caught in my throat as I spoke what I had planned in the last fraction of seconds after Rosario's eyes fell on me.

"Leave them or I'll kill myself." My voice was stern and resolute, a complete contrast to what I was feeling inside.