Take My Breath Away

Half of the man's face was obscured by his face mask. He looked middle-aged, maybe forty years old. He held a woman in his arms. Hearing what Pike said, he kicked him and cursed, "You idiot! You can't even handle one skinny bitch! I'm running low on patience. Bring her here tomorrow. I'll interrogate her myself! I'll show you how it's done!" He believed he had what it took to make her spill the beans.

Pike swallowed his anger and nodded to his boss. "Yes sir!"

After Pike left with his men, the woman in the masked man's arms said the most vicious words in the gentlest voice. "Kirk, it's just two women. Why not just kill them?"

Kirk Qin thought on this for a while, muscles dancing in his face, jaw set in fierce determination. "We'll soon find out if Erma Huo is really a cop. I'll break her, but it might take some *ahem!* doing. If she still won't talk after that, then there's no reason to keep her alive."

Erma's skin was fair and tender, and she was more beautiful than any other woman in the surrounding villages. All men were attracted to her. It was no secret what he wanted to be "doing."

Seeing the lust in his eyes, the woman stopped talking and carefully served him.

At dawn, Erica awoke and decided to put her plan into action. She placed a box in the hole on the ground, covered it with a wooden board, and covered that with a layer of soil. She moved the table on top of all that.

After making sure the box was essentially invisible, she went to the sink to wash her hands, watching the dirt turn to mud and slide down the drain. Finally, she opened the door of her room.

As soon as she did that, she saw a glint of metal flash toward her. Someone was trying to stab her with a dagger. She dodged, and her attacker ducked behind her, intending to slice her throat open. She spun, and dug her elbow into her attacker's ribs.

Then, shaking from adrenaline, she took in what was going on outside her room. There were at least twenty people standing in the old yard. Tessie there too, tied up. Her mouth was covered with tape and she could only make muffled sounds.

Pike laughed wildly, "Good morning, little widow! Your friend is in our hands. I advise you to surrender, or I can't guarantee her safety!"

Erica leaned against the door casually. After thinking for a few seconds, she said, "Let her go. I'll go with you."

"You wish! No, I'll think we'll keep both of you!" Pike and Erica had been at odds for a long time. He strongly suspected the woman worked for the police. It was just that he couldn't find any evidence of that yet, and she had never been caught red handed.

Erica shook her head. "My friend can't fight. All you're going to do is push her around. So, that's a deal-breaker. If you don't let her go, I won't go with you! Haul her off somewhere, and the only thing left of your yard will be ashes!"

Erica was sure there was something wrong with that yard.

Pike's face darkened. He knew he couldn't allow the place to be destroyed, so he had to order his men, "Let her go!"

The moment Tessie was freed from her bonds, she rushed over to Erica, took her hand and said anxiously, "No, you can't go with them!"

"Don't worry! This isn't my first rodeo. I'll be back soon." Erica whispered, "I've got this. But you need to keep an eye on the box. If I'm not back by tonight, get out. Remember the old place? You can hide there!"

Tessie nodded blankly, "Okay."

Erica followed the crowd out of her house. There were some villagers outside who were watching the fun. A neatly dressed middle-aged man shouted at Pike, "I don't understand you guys. Why are you always watching those two young girls?"

Pike crooked his finger at him. "Got a problem with that? Then come and save her!"

Erica turned around and smiled, waving at the middle-aged man. "Don't worry, Uncle. It doesn't matter. If I die, just bury me in front of Pike's house, so that I can haunt him every night as a ghost."

Her words made Pike's hair stand on end. "Damn it! Why would you even say that? You've got a sick mind, chica. Fuck off and die!"

Erica laughed at him ruthlessly. "You're such a coward! Afraid of a few words?"

Hearing that, Pike raised his fist, intending to strike her from behind. As if she had eyes in her back, Erica suddenly stretched out her right leg, kicked back, and her strike leveled at the man's belly.

He wasn't hit hard, but he put his hands on his stomach and started behaving.

Erica was taken to the dilapidated yard she had tried to climb over last night. There were more people waiting for her this time.

The masked man was in the middle of this group. Erica had seen him several times, but they had never spoken.

She walked over, and as if she had arrived at her own home, she casually found a seat and leaned on the table. "Is it time for breakfast yet? I'm starving!"

Pike ran over and tried to pull her away, but Kirk Qin stopped him. "Very well. Serve the meal!"

"Yes, Mr. Qin."

Just like that, plates and dishes and bowls were brought to Erica, as dozens of people watched her eat.

Everyone stared at her, afraid that she would disappear all of a sudden.

Kirk Qin lit a cigarette and asked the woman wiping her mouth, "You are Erma Huo?"

"Yes! What do you need?" She looked around but couldn't find the trash can. Finally, she held the used tissue in her hand.

"Where are you from?"

"Oh, from the slum in M Country. You've probably heard of it. I came from there." She wasn't lying. Tessie and she did come here by way of that slum.

Of course, Kirk Qin knew the slum she was talking about. Tow Village was already very poor, but that slum was much poorer than this village.

But he didn't believe her at all! Women from that slum could ever be as lovely as Erma! "What does your husband do?"

After thinking of how to answer that, she answered, "He's a salesman. He sells a lot of things—houses, clothes, watches, electronic products... Anyway, he has a lot of experience!"

Only Erica could describe the CEO of a multinational group like an ordinary salesman.

Kirk Qin exhaled a mouthful of smoke and was dubious about her words. "Since your children aren't here anymore, when are you leaving?"

"I'm waiting for my husband to come pick me up! How else would I get back?" She didn't want to take a carriage from the village to the town, take a ship in the neighboring town to the city, and then take a train to the airport.

"When's he coming?"

"I don't know. Whenever he misses me enough!"

Kirk Qin went quiet for a time. After a while he looked into Erica's eyes and asked, "A few days ago, dozens of my men were arrested by the police. Did you know that?"

Erica was unsurprised. "Oh yeah. I knew that. Who wouldn't?" Everyone in the village knew it. If she said she didn't know, she was either lying or stupid.

Cigarette smoldering in his fingers, Kirk Qin stared at the woman and asked, "Who tipped them off?"

The woman replied with a question. "Who? I don't know. I want to know too!"

The man stubbed out his cigarette on the ground. "You'll have some time to think about it. About 12 hours. If you still won't tell me..." The warning in his tone made Erica shiver.

Then she was left alone in the yard. Well, not quite alone, since there were ten other guards there.

Night fell quickly. Erica was still bored. He took her phone, so she had nothing else to do than to play with a few blades of grass.

When it was completely dark, she knew that her time had come. It was easy to do what she wanted under cover of night.