Alicia’s POV In an instant everything went awry.I barely remembered the car stopping me; my heart was pounding too much to understand much of anything as the gunshots went on.“Alicia.”I closed my eyes and grit my teeth to the point that it became painful, thinking about e words that I had said to Daya about involving myself with men that were in this sort of business. I had warned her so why had I still…“Alicia.”I felt fingers wrapped around my chin and tug my face up to meet grey eyes.I was only faintly aware of Acker’s concern which showed in his expression, and yet.Behind those eyes were steel, one I had never seen before.“Listen to me,” He said, as gunshots poured in. “Nothing is going to happen to you. You’re safe. Stay in the car and don’t move unless you hear my voice.”I nodded rapidly as those words washed over me. I couldn’t say anything back, as my tongue was like lead in my mouth.Then there was a lull. The entire place went silent for a couple of seconds and it s

Alicia’s POV:Bang!My heart skipped and I whipped around, wide eyed, to stare at the door.“Sorry Miss,” Farrah at least looked a little remorseful. She carried in the basket of freshly laundered sheets and towels and entered my bathroom, while I tried to calm my pounding heart down.It wasn’t my fault, I tried to console myself.I was just a little bit startled is all…The blurry, terrifying memories of last night flashes in my head and played over and over like a movie, and I couldn’t let it go no matter what.Knock, knock, knock.I looked up and saw to my surprise, a certain platinum blonde man standing by the open door.When had Farrah left? I was unsure of myself; had I somehow dreamed it happening, or had I lost track of time?“Mikael,” i said his name, filled with desire to know. I needed to know this was a dream, or something.His green eyes gaze was intense as he s ts red back at me and I could have sworn the corners of his lips tilted upward before I heard a chuckle.“Wow,

Alicia’s POV:Damn it.My breathing was heavy and I leaned against the tree to steady it. Sweat rolled down my face as I took in deep breaths and exhaled them slowly as best as I could until my racing heart began to slow down.“This is so damn hard,” I mumbled to myself, right in the cusp of dawn.The trail I was in was close to my apartment and I had taken to jogging on it every day. Though I enjoyed it sometimes, there were times like this that reminded me of how long I spent being totally unfit.There was a chill in the air and I shivered as a breeze washed over me.Making a mental note to bring my jacket from now on, I began the slow walk back to my apartment.Though the sun had risen by then, there weren’t a lot of people on the streets, so I plugged in my headphones and Enjoyed a bit of music. I was going to make mental notes for today, thinking of the one college class I had to go to as well as a volunteering gig I got the previous day.My deal is looking up. I paid no attentio

Alicia’s POVThe buzzing of my phone was what woke me up in the middle of the night and I opened my eyes to the blurry sight of my pillow, darkness, and a light from afar.It took me more than a couple seconds to come to my senses and I yawned a little before raising my head at the buzzing phone.Then, it stopped.My curiosity was piqued once I inched my hand closer to the phone and picked it up from the wireless charging port on my nightstand (something I didn’t know existed in my bedroom until a rather fortuitous accident a couple of days ago).It was 12.37am.So why would I be getting calls?As if to Answer the unspoken question, the phone once again began to vibrate in my hand. Another call coming through.I stared at the phone for a moment.Who was ‘The Love of My Life’? I didn’t save this number, nor did I know who it might be.I pursed my lips. Should I answer or not?The call went on for another couple of seconds before I finally made my decision and swiped the green button on

Alicia’s POV“Thanks, bye,” I waved at the manager as I closed for the day. It was my first day at work. I had finally caved and gotten a job closer to my college. It was a part time job, but still quite nice to have something else to do other than study and lounge around in the apartment all day.My phone sat in the pocket of my leather jacket as I refrained from calling Dominic or any of the other men to pick me up. I had shown up to the small cafe without my car, not wanting to make a bad first impression.Lingering on the side of the pavement for a second, I pondered on what I should take: taxi or bus?I still had my bus pass from the times I used it religiously to get to my former job so I quickly made the decision and began to walk down to where I remembered the nearest bus stop to be.“Oh, Alicia, is that you?” I heard a familiar voice that stopped me in my tracks a couple of meters from the bus stop.I turned around, my lips parting as I saw my best friend… or rather, my forme