Femme Fatale: The King's Deadly Temptress

Chapter 226: I Will Catch You

The woman closed the door behind her and turned to face Katherine and the young man. Raising her hands in front of her, she slowly walked forward.

"Stay where you are," the young man said, still pointing the gun forward.

"Okay okay I'm staying here. Just lower your gun. Here, I'll throw mine away, see?" The woman threw her handgun on the floor and kicked it to the side.

Katherine could sense the young man's breathing becoming heavy as he lowered his hand slowly. He snaked his hand around to hold Katherine's arm as though he was making sure she was safely covered.

"You're trying to get her out of here, right?" The woman slowly stepped towards them. "That window is quite high up the ground. She will need your help."

The young man glanced out the window and gulped. It was indeed quite high for Katherine. Holstering his gun, he quietly opened the tall window and looked down at the ground below, trying to figure out his next steps. He estimated that it was approximately three to four meters from the window to the ground.

He faced Katherine again and told her, "Listen, I'm going to go first and I will catch you. Okay?"

Katherine looked at his eyes and all she could see was his resolution. She couldn't say anything. She didn't want to go out without her parents but she couldn't stay inside either. The young man gave her a small smile again, his face was camouflaged by the black streaks but she could see the genuineness in his eyes and it made her nod.

The young man turned towards the window but before he could move, the woman cautiously went near them and she told him, "Be careful."

His brows knitted, unsure why the woman was helping them escape. He nodded once and in one swift motion, he swung his legs to the ledge of the window. He was so graceful and he didn't even make a sound as he dropped himself down, his feet landing on the ground effortlessly.

The young man looked from left to right, making sure it was safe before he gave them a signal. Katherine was helped by the woman off the window with the latter's strong arms. Katherine dangled above the ground the woman helping her from the window while the young man waited for her to fall so he could catch her.

As soon as Katherine was let go, she fell down and the young man caught her. During the fall, she accidentally let out a yelp but the young man's hand immediately covered her mouth, stifling her cry.

"Shh Be quiet," he said and slowly removed his hand.

The two of them looked up as though they were waiting for the woman to follow but she was gone.

"I don't think she's coming with us," he said as he grabbed Katherine's hand. "We need to get out of here. Try to keep up."

He dragged her towards the woods on the northwest side of the land, the two of them running away from the house. Once they were at a safer distance, they docked at a large tree, both of them panting and catching their breath.

"What about my parents? We have to save them too," Katherine clutched the young man's shirt, her eyes pleading as she looked at him. He didn't say anything and he couldn't look at her in the eye.

"Please"

"You wait here. Do not go anywhere. You wait here and wait for me. I'll come back for you. Do you understand?" he asked.

"But, I want to save"

"Wait here." The young man placed her earphones on her ears, checking the 1st generation iPod to see if there was a song playing and gave her another gentle smile before he ran back towards the house, leaving Katherine barefoot and cold out in the woods.

She waited for what seemed like forever, burying her face on her knees as she prayed to the gods. A cold hand landed pressed on her small shoulder and she lifted her head expecting to see the young man again only to find another stranger.

Katherine got startled and she scrambled to the side, trying to get away from the man.

"Hey, hey it's okay. I'm not going to hurt you," he said as he lowered himself to her level, his blue eyes staring back at her.

And that was the first time that she ever saw Chris

Right before her house exploded.

***

"Katherine?" Amelia's smooth voice snapped Katherine back to earth with a gasp.

Katherine blinked again and again, wiping the tears that escaped her eyes. "It was you that night I remember now. You were there too just like Chris and Damien" She breathed deeply, trying to will herself to ask the question that pained her to ask. "Did you kill them?"

Amelia sucked in air and looked at her in the eye as she replied, "I wasn't supposed to be part of that mission. I used to have a person from inside the other organization who was there that night. I only heard the last minute and learned that my son was sent there by his uncle. I I just I couldn't. He was too young. I didn't want him to be part of this world"

"Did you kill my parents?" Katherine repeated her question. At that moment, she couldn't care less about Amelia's motherly reason why she was there. But Katherine had to know if Amelia had harmed her parents.

"No, and I'm sure my son didn't either. It could have been anyone from the two parties." 

Hearing Amelia's response, Katherine didn't know what to feel. Relief was not the right term because it didn't change what happened that night. And the thought of that painful memory crushed her once again. Katherine thought that she could no longer cry after a month of no tears. 

But after recalling that memory so clearly, she felt so broken again. Her parents were killed that night and she was the only one who got out. The guilt of being the only one surviving that horrible night crept up on her, clawing her heart so sharply that she could feel the physical pain in her chest.

Clutching her chest with her hands, she broke down.

Amelia helped Katherine to the sofa where she patiently stroked her back until she calmed down again. Katherine was so pitiful and was once only an innocent young girl but because of that night, her world changed so differently.

"Sorry about that. I thought I was all dried up but here I am I'm a mess again," Katherine said when she calmed down.

Amelia gave her a glass of water. "I can't imagine what you've been through. You must be having a really hard time. There's nothing wrong with crying, Katherine. It doesn't mean you're weak if you do. It simply means you're hurting."

Katherine didn't respond and she took a small sip of the water. Her mind briefly drifted back to Damien and her heart fluttered and throbbed at the same time. She breathed deeply, hoping to make the pain go away. And as if by nature, her hand flew to the ring on her chest, her fingers clutching it. Holding the onyx ring somehow calmed her down.

"Did he give that to you? It looks nice," Amelia remarked. When Katherine still remained quiet, she added, "There's just one thing that I want to know I may be prying but I need to understand where you stand. How mad are you at Damien? How much do you hate him?"

Katherine shifted her gaze and it was fixed on Amelia. She looked at her, shaking her head as she answered, "I'm not I don't hate him!"

"Oh you don't? Then if not, why"

"I hate myself," she muttered hurriedly. "I hate myself because no matter what... I couldn't hate him. It's too late. I fell so deep. And I shouldn't anymore. I can't I can't be with him. I can't anymore. So I hate myself."

Amelia Silva didn't expect to hear those words from Katherine. This time, she was the one who became speechless. 

After all, she knew how it feels when you can't be with the people you love.