CHAPTER 39: BULLETPROOF?

Chapter 39: Bulletproof?

Everything happened too fast. The sound of the gunshot was as loud as thunder in the burning hallway.

Danielle’s reaction was too slow, her body was refusing to do anything from fear, her eyes were not blinking.

She saw the bullet speeding toward her, but before she could even gasp, Theo...!.

He jumped in front of her, his body slammed against hers, forcing her to the floor. The gunfire roared through the smoke.

The impact hit Theo’s chest with a thud, loud enough to make Danielle come back to focus.

"Theo!" she cried, yelling as they both hit the ground hard.

For a second, time seemed to stop...slowly, second by second, Danielle managed to look at her surroundings...and her bodyguard?

Theo wasn’t moving...His body was on top of hers, way heavier than she thought, shielding her like a wall.

Her hands were shaking as she tried to touch him. "Theo, please," she whispered. "No, no, no..."

Danielle’s heart was pounding so hard it started hurting her chest. She pressed her hands against his body and felt the warmth fading or so she thought.

Tears started to fall, her breath eventually turned into broken sobs. "Theo, open your eyes... please... you can’t leave me like this."

Then, suddenly, Danielle noticed something weird.

There was a weak vibration of a heartbeat.

"Theo?" she breathed out, whimpering between hope and disbelief.

And then... Theo groaned.

He coughed lightly, his hand slid to his side as he blinked a few times through the dust. "That... was close," he muttered under his breath, being very much alive.

Danielle’s heart was going to end its contract and move out from her body. "You’re alive?"

Theo let out a rough, quiet laugh. "Barely."

She blinked at him like it was the only thing Danielle knew how to do. "But the bullet... I saw it hit you!"

Theo sat up slowly, wincing, and pulled open the front of his jacket to show the dark vest beneath it.

The bullet had hit straight into the vest, leaving only a dent where it stopped. "Bulletproof," he spoke simply. "You didn’t think I’d walk around without protection, did you?"

Danielle gasped, then smacked his chest with her palm. "You scared me! I thought you were dead!"

Theo caught her hand gently, his eyes softened a little. "Maybe if you kissed me, I’d wake up faster," he teased, curving his lips into the smallest smile.

Her mouth fell open. "That’s not funny, Theo!"

He smiled more, watching her expression change from shock to anger. "You were crying...You must care."

She pushed his shoulder weakly, though her tears kept falling. "You are the worst!" she shouted, hitting him again in the chest, forgetting for a second that it probably still hurt. "Don’t ever scare me like that again."

Theo caught both her wrists and pulled her closer. "I’m fine. I promise."

But Danielle wasn’t listening. She pressed her forehead against his chest, crying quietly..."I thought I lost you," she muttered.

Theo’s face relaxed, his breath slowed as he looked down at her. For like a second, he forgot that he was at work and that there was a lot of smoke. He placed his hand behind her head gently. "You didn’t. I’m right here."

Their eyes met, and for a second, the world stayed so still again.

Then, the noise of a car broke the silence, slamming outside the shattered hallway.

So many footsteps.... More than one.

Theo turned quickly, "We need to move."

He helped Danielle stand, keeping one arm around her waist. The heat from the fire grew stronger, and parts of the ceiling started to crumble. Theo glanced around for Jackson, but the man was gone.

"He fled," Theo muttered, as irritation covered his tone. "He must’ve planned this as a distraction."

"Who?" Danielle asked, wiping her tears with the back of her hand.

"Jackson. He’s working with someone else most likely...And I think I know who."

Before he could explain, Felix appeared through the haze, his face looked marked with dust and sweat. "Theo!" he called. "Are you two okay?"

Danielle nodded weakly. "We’re fine... thanks to him."

Felix’s eyes moved to Theo and then to the wrecked hallway behind them. "I tracked the car Jackson used to escape," he said, holding out his phone. "He wasn’t alone. There were at least three others in the area...same signal patterns as before."

Theo frowned. "Meaning?"

"Meaning someone’s still watching her," Felix replied. His tone was serious now, the usual lightness gone. "And they’re close."

Theo cursed under his breath. "We need to get her out of here."

Danielle clung to his arm as they walked out of the ruined hall. Her knees were wobbly, and face seemed to be drained of colour, and her clothes were covered in dust.

When they reached the car outside, Felix turned to her with concern.

"Here," he said, removing his black shirt and tossing it to her. "You’re shaking. Take it."

Danielle blinked. "But you..."

"I’m fine," Felix interrupted, "I’m used to a little cold."

She hesitated before taking it, wrapping it around herself. The fabric was warm but did smell like smoke and cologne. As she adjusted it, her eyes caught something she didn’t expect.

"Tattoos?"

They climbed up Felix’s chest and shoulder...inked lines of black and silver that formed rose-type of shapes.

Some were symbols, some words, all of them looked mysterious and beautiful.

Danielle stared for a moment, surprised by how calm and serious he suddenly looked without his shirt.

Felix noticed her staring, his grin returned like an old ghost. "You haven’t seen them before, have you, Danielle?"

She shook her head slowly, her cheeks started warming. "No..."

"Well, you can touch it it you want-" Felix noticed Theo’s glare. "Actually, next time."

Danielle didn’t understand what just happened...

Theo turned away a second later after relaxing his jaw. "Let’s go. We still have work to do."

And as they walked toward the car, Danielle didn’t notice how tightly Theo’s hand was clenched at his side.