“No …!”
Ignoring the tears blocking her view, Gabriella ran and attacked the masked man’s head. She didn’t have time to think of any other way to thwart the second blow. With all her might, the woman pulled the villain away from Max.
“Don’t hurt my husband!” she groaned, almost in despair.
Unfortunately, the big man was too strong. With ease, he pushed the woman to the ground, let his black mask in her grip.
Realizing that his face had been exposed, the villain snorted. However, instead of taking care of the woman, he targeted Max again.
Wasting no time, the assailant again raised the bat into the air. Witnessing it, Gabriella’s breath got shorter and faster.
“No …!”
Without thinking, the woman threw herself to protect her husband. A second later, a heavy blow landed on her back. She immediately groaned and rested on both elbows and knees.
“Get out of the way or you’ll get hurt!” the attacker rebuked.
Instead of moving, Gabriella curled up, securing Max’s head with her body. “Why do you attack my husband? Please don’t hurt him! His life has suffered too much,” the woman sobbed with all hope.
“I’ll say it again. Get out of the way! I won’t hesitate to hit you too.”
Gabriella’s cry suddenly grew louder. “Please … don’t kill my husband. What’s wrong with you? Don’t make him suffer.”
A disbelieving sigh escaped from the assailant’s mouth. After chuckling in annoyance, he grabbed Gabriella’s arm, forcing her to let go of her husband. “Get lost!”
“No …! Don’t kill Max!” the woman shrieked as she had clung to her husband’s shoulder. No matter how strong the attacker’s pull, she would not give up. Her fingers were already locked tightly.
“Don’t let my patience run out!”
Again, Gabriella shook her head. “I will never let anyone hurt my husband!” she rebuked in a trembling voice.
Realizing that the woman’s determination was made up, the assailant gritted his teeth. “Don’t blame me if you can no longer see this life.”
A second later, the grim-looking man raised the baseball bat. Without the slightest bit of pity, he hit the woman’s back with a loud thud.
In an instant, Gabriella’s whole body shook from the blow. However, her grip did not weaken at all and instead, became stronger. She wouldn’t let the assailant get to Max.
Once more time, the ruthless man swung the stick. The moans of pain then sounded more real. Gabriella had to close her eyes to brace herself.
“Give up! You won’t survive.”
Gabriella could no longer answer. She only shake her head, confirming the determination.
Smiling sarcastically, the man held the bat in one hand. “Okay, if you don’t want to get out of the way.”
A second later, the man started hitting from all directions. Gabriella had no other choice but to hug Max tighter.
Tears kept flowing from the tightly closed eyelids. The pain had dulled the woman’s nerves. However, she knew that she could not give up.
“You turned out to be strong too, huh?” the assailant muttered as he continued to wave the stick. His breath rumbled when he sniffed the determination that was as solid as steel.
“Please… stop,” Gabriella breathed almost inaudibly. Her chest was starting to constrict against the pain.
“I will stop if you let go of your husband.”
Without hesitation, the man continued to add bruises to the woman’s body. He had never encountered such a tenacious opponent. Testing the limits of Gabriella’s endurance was a joy in himself.
“Can you still survive?” he asked intimidatingly, before launching another attack.
A moment later, the woman’s cry no longer sounded. Her whole body was in excruciating pain. There was no proper way to express the suffering she had to endure. But, Max’s safety had always come first.
“Come on, Madam. Give up. You still have life expectancy if you let go of your husband now,” the fierce man coaxed while pressing Gabriella’s shoulder with the tip of the bat. The woman could only moan in a weak voice.
“Tsk, I’m starting to run out of time. If you don’t give up now, I’ll be forced to throw your corpse into the sea. And your husband … will still fall into my hands.”
At the thought of failing to protect Max, terrified cries began to sound. Gabriella didn’t want anything bad to happen to her husband.
“Please … don’t hurt Max. You can kill me, but don’t torture my husband. Please …” the woman sighed softly. Her hope had faded.
“You’re not afraid to die, are you? Well then, say goodbye to your husband.”
Realizing that the assailant was about to target her head, Gabriella closed her eyes tightly. Her heart ached more than her back. She was not ready if she had to part with Max. Their happy life just begun. It would be unfair if it had to end tragically.
“I’m sorry, Max. Forgive me ….”
A second later, everything turned dark. Gabriella had lost consciousness with the position still hugging her love. The last tears flowed very sadly.
“Do you still breath?” the assailant asked as he shoved the woman on the shoulder.
After a while, no answer was heard. The fingers that were originally gripping tightly, had opened without the slightest movement.
“Tsk, it turns out, you’re not as strong as I thought,” the man said as he put the bat on the table. A second later, he began to shift Gabriella, preparing to lift her up to be thrown into the ocean.
Just as the assailant was about to exert himself, the doorbell suddenly rang. A moment later, the cell phone on the table rang.
“Mr. Max, are you inside? Your wife’s favorite soup has come,” a man from outside shouted.
“And pizza too!” another voice called from the same direction.
In an instant, the ruthless man’s eyes widened. He remembered that the entrance was still wide open. “Tsk, I should have postponed my flight and got into action tonight,” he grumbled furiously.
With transparent glass on various sides, the man realized that his space was limited. After shaking his eyeballs for a moment, he finally tidied up his clothes and walked leisurely.
“So, the orders have arrived,” the villain said, trying to sound friendly.
Seeing the terrifying foreign figure, the couriers furrowed their brows in unison. “Is Mr. Max inside?” one of them asked.
“Yes. He asked me to take the order.”
With a suspicious look, the man in the yellow and red vest handed over the food. The ruthless man accepted with a forced curved lip.
“Thank you,” the assailant said gruffly. A second later, he turned around without saying another word.
“Sorry Mister. This order has not been paid for,” one of the couriers said, stopping the man’s step.
After grunting in annoyance, the foreigner turned around while taking out his wallet.
“How many?”
The two men in front of him spontaneously stared at each other. They both knew that Max always paid for his orders in advance.
Realizing the suspicion, the violent man knew that the play could not continue. With the speed of light, he fled and left the couriers wide-eyed.
“What happened?” the courier in the red vest sighed.
After a moment of confusion, the man in the yellow vest came in, looking for the owner of the house. “Mr. Max? Mrs. Gabriella?”
Unfortunately, no one answered. With an uneasy heart and hasty steps, he continued his steps towards the living room.
In an instant, the courier’s mouth gaped wordlessly. Max was crying with the unconscious Gabriella in his arms.