Corrupted Values

Chapter Seventeen - First

I sigh before getting up and going to my room. I enter my room and walk towards the en suite bathroom. It’s small and narrow. I turn on the water to shower in hopes it’ll calm my racing mind. I strip off my dirty clothes and step into the warm water. I let the water bounce off my face and run down my body. I wash my hair and clean up before getting out and drying myself off.

I walk into my room and pull on my black jeans. I put on a bra while I dry off my hair and look through my closet for my black top. I pull it out and throw it on before going back into the bathroom. I blow dry and brush out my hair before putting it up in a high ponytail. I walk over to my nightstand, open the drawer and pull out my knife and gun, holstering them to my legs. Once done, I walk to the end of my bed pulling on my ankle-high boots and lacing them up while putting another knife inside. Once done, I walk down the hall to Zuria’s room and knock.

“Come in.” I hear her call out before I enter.

“Hey. What do you think?” I ask, and I turn to show her my look.

“Damn babe, you look good. I wish I had that hourglass figure.” She says flirtatiously. I roll my eyes, smiling.

“Yeah yeah see you when I get back.” I say, walking out of her room and downstairs to meet Andre.

“Are you ready?” He asks, looking up and meeting my eyes. I nod before he turns and we go outside. I look down all the stairs and roll my eyes thinking about how many times I’m probably going to have to go up and down them. I get into the passenger seat while Andre drives and three other men get into the back. We start the forty-five-minute drive to the warehouse. I watch out the window, trying to avoid looking at anyone.

I wish I was going with Zuria instead of Andre. I don’t think he likes me much. He never talks to me unless he has to. After what feels like an eternity, we finally pull into a big warehouse. We all get out, and I make my way to the office. I go through all the shipments to make sure each is ready to be shipped. Soon, the crews start showing up for pickup. As each shipment comes in, I oversee everything, making sure nothing goes wrong, while I also sign each as they get sent or delivered. The first couple of hours go by smoothly when all a sudden I hear a commotion outside. Andre comes running past me in the direction of the door. I slowly make my way to the door before one of the men I came with runs in.

“What the hell is happening out there?” I ask in a rushed voice.

“You need to hide the Rodrigo’s are here.” He says in a rush, walking me back to the office. I go in and lock the door. I continue to hear yelling as it gets closer. I decide to get up and walk out there to see what's happening. I slowly open the door, looking around. Soon, Andre catches my eye while he's arguing with someone. I go to open the door more when it’s suddenly pulled open, and I feel someone yank me out and throw me to the ground. I look up to be face to face with a gun.

“We haven't seen you before. What’s your name beautiful?” He asks sternly while putting his finger on the trigger.

“Leave her alone!” Andre yells sternly, catching the man's attention. I quickly take my chance while he’s distracted to kick his hand, making him drop the gun. I grab my gun and point it at him as I cautiously stand. I hit the side of the man's head with the handle of my gun, making him fall to the ground out cold. I look around to see Andre at gunpoint. While the other three men I came with have two men at gunpoint. I walk towards Andre pointing my gun at the man that has his gun pointed at him.

“Who the hell are you?” He asks, looking at me.

“No one,” Andre answers.

“Shut up!” The man says before he hits Andre in the back of the head, making him fall to the ground out cold. The man quickly turns to me, but not fast enough. I shoot him in the leg, and he falls to the ground, grabbing his leg and dropping the gun.

“You bitch.” He says angrily. I kick the gun away and point my gun at him once again.

“Now… tell me what the hell you want.” I say sternly.

“Screw you. I won’t tell you anything, so you might as well just kill me.” He says condescendingly. I tighten my grip on the gun, looking down at him.

“f**k off sweetheart, we both know you won’t do it. Now put it away, and maybe I’ll be nice and bring you home. I’m sure you’ll love it.” He says with a wicked smile on his face and lust in his eyes. I feel a rush of anger in me and pull the trigger, making a bullet go through his sick head. I turn to the other two men with anger still hot in my veins.

“Tie them up and put them in the car, then help Andre in. I want two of you to take them to the main house while one of you stays here with me.” I order. They stand there for a moment and look at each other before following my orders. I look back at the man on the ground as blood pools around him and I let out a breath of realization.

“Oh my god.” I whisper to myself before I look down at the gun in my hand. One of the men comes up behind me and places his hand gently on my shoulder. I slowly put the gun back into my holster.

“If you hadn’t, he would have killed you. You did good.” He says comfortingly before walking over and picking up Andre. I slowly make my way back to the office, closing the door behind me and sitting in the chair. I sigh thinking about what I just did when the door opens.

“Zuria?” I say, confused as I look up.

“Hey girl.” She says, walking over, pulling me up and hugging me tightly.

“Are you okay?” She asks.

“I killed-” I cut myself off, breaking down and crying.

“I know. That’s why I’m here. One of the men called saying something happened, but it was taken care of.” She says, hugging me tightly. I try to hold back my cries but the gun going off and the image of his body replays in my head, making me cry more.

“It’s okay to cry. I did too the first time I killed.” She says reassuringly. We hug until I can finally calm down.

“Come on, I'll do the rest of the shipments. You go home. Boss wants you back anyway.” She says, taking my hand and leading me out to a car. All I can do is nod in response and follow behind her. I sit in the passenger side and Zuria closes my door. I look down at my hands feeling numb. One of the men I came with gets in the driver's side, and we start the drive home. After a short drive, pull into the driveway. I get out of the car and close the door slowly. Time to make my way yet again up these horrible stairs. I let out a breath before making my way up the stairs. I slowly make my way to my bathroom. I turn on the water hoping it can wash away not just the blood but the memories.

I strip off my bloody clothes and step into the warm water. After a while, my mind goes numb and the water runs cold. I step out of the water and dry myself off before getting dressed in pajamas. I crawl into my cold bed and can't help but feel anything but alone. In a room that feels like a cage and a house that feels like a prison. I never asked for this life.

How could this have been what my mom wanted for me? I ask myself. I never asked for this pain, and now it’s all I have. I miss my room at home with my mom. I miss waking up to the smell of pancakes. Tears slowly fall from my eyes and trail down to my lips, making my mouth taste salty. I can taste the salt from my tears as I cry. I miss Remi. She was my first friend since leaving. I miss my room. She helped me decorate. She made me feel loved and never like a burden, but now I can't even go back to Remi after what I’ve done. I can’t live with her now, she'll never understand or look at me the same. Now if I tell her what I’ve done, what will she think? Will she look at me like a monster? Maybe she’d be right too. I think to myself. Tears stream down my cheeks as I hug my pillow. After what feels like an eternity, I drift off to sleep.