Chapter – 2

It has been two hours since their daughter was kidnapped. The cops searched the entire area near the grocery store and came up with nothing.

Amanda was lost in her stupor. She wanted her daughter back. They were supposed to leave Knoxville towards their new home in Vermont tomorrow. She wanted to give her daughter the best education, take her to places she has never seen. They planned so many things to do once they reached Vermont and she felt so lost now.

Alexa would be crying now, she never stayed away from them before. Is she okay? Are they hurting her? Several thoughts occupied her brain as a fresh set of tears replaced the old ones.

Victor had a friend in the police department and has accompanied him in the search, the tension increased with every passing second.

Alexandra is their angel. Victor couldn't think of a second without his dear daughter. His body shook as he cried silently in the back seat of the police car. Victor’s college friend Vernon and his assistant Philip were searching Alexa around the dark alleys and the old buildings.

They searched almost all parts of the town and were returning back to the station when they received a call from a woman, who lived at the edge of the forest. The elderly woman claimed that she saw a group of men taking a small child towards the forest a few minutes ago.

Vernon turned the car and they raced towards the forest, to where the call came from. They soon met with an old woman who lived on the edge of the forest, she pointed towards the dark forest where the tree lines started as she explained what she witnessed earlier.

Vernon instructed Philip to call for back up as he rushed towards the forest, holding his gun out. The torchlight they held, illuminated the dirt path as they advanced with careful steps, listening to any sound.

Half an hour later, they were deep in the forest with no luck. A scream tore through the night as a gunshot went off towards their right. Vernon and Victor took off running towards the direction. The sound belonged to a man and Victor felt hopeful that his daughter was still safe.

Soon, they reached an old worn out cabin and they were greeted by snarls and screams. Entering the cabin they saw the men pointing their gun towards a small boy, while Alexa cowered behind him. One of the man’s arms was bleeding and he held it close to his chest glaring at the boy with so much hatred.

The dusty cabin had a single bulb, which cast a dim glow over them. Victor watched the scene in shock as the little boy not over five years old stood protectively before his daughter. He appeared angry and was bleeding from where he was shot.

The body had blood in his mouth and hands. It was hard to tell if it belonged to a boy or the man who stood glaring at him. Victor wondered how the boy was even standing, with the injury he possessed he should have been dead by now. Alexa has not noticed their arrival as she watched the men in front of her with utter fear.

"Freeze... put your guns down," Vernon bellowed as he pointed his gun towards the men.

"Daddy..." Victor heard Alexa calling him in a low voice; she still stood behind the boy without moving.

The men turned towards them, pure rage dancing on their faces. Instead of lowering their weapons they shot Vernon with no warning. Vernon fell with a groan as Victor scrambled to the back of the cabin in fright.

"No, no, please. Please don't shoot," he raised both of his hands in a surrendering motion.

Victor was no match for the four burly men who stood there; they looked ready to do anything. He silently prayed that Philip finds them here with their back up. He had to save his daughter and the little boy who stood protectively in front of her. Vernon was still alive, which was evident from his harsh breathing.

"Please, I'm not rich but I do have some savings. I will give everything to you, please let us go." Victor begged, but the men just cackled in reply.

"We don’t want your money, we have the kids and you are going to die here with the cop." They laughed wickedly pointing the gun at him.

Victor's eyes widened in realisation, these people kidnapped children and sold them, Vernon has told him before about the child trafficking. Some kids ended up dead in the sewers in the city missing their internal organs, while some went missing forever.

He glanced towards his daughter as helplessness weighed down on him. He wasn’t a fighter. Hell, he did not even know the basics. Victor was just an ordinary man, who tried to live his life one day at a time. His pay was less and he struggled every month to make his ends meet.

A tear rolled down his cheeks, he might die today. But, he will allow nothing to happen to his only daughter. His brother, Arthur Emmanuel Steller would look after his wife and daughter if he were to die. That thought provided him a sense of calm.

"Run!" he yelled at his daughter, as he charged towards the men. The gun went off and the bullet hit his torso, but he kept going on until he crashed with the guy who shot him.

Pain shot through his body as the red liquid whooshed out painting the floor beneath. He punched the guy few times before being kicked off him by the others. He was tackled by them and groaned in pain as they threw punches at him.

At least his daughter will live. Philip was out there expecting a backup. If the kids can get a head start they will make it safe to Philip, he thought as he took the beating. He turned towards where his daughter was earlier to see her still there crying, a guy stood pointing the gun at them.

It didn't go as he expected and the guys where clever. One guy stood guarding the children while others attacked him. He watched them helplessly as dark spots clouded his vision.

"Daddy…" Victor heard his angel’s voice whispering from the distance as he fought the dizziness.

Something has changed inside the boy as he charged at the guy who stood there. The kidnapper’s screams filled the cabin as Victor heard a loud snarl that resembled to that of a wild animal. The goons attacking Victor had left him by now and charged towards the boy as Alexa ran towards him.

The sudden change at the situation awoke Victor’s brain and he watched with wide eyes as the boy attacked them ruthlessly. The boy’s eyes including his sclera were dark as night and his hands had extended to some furry claws. His teeth have extended as he roared like a lion.

Victor clutched his daughter closer and dragged himself to Vernon. Pulling out the walkie-talkie from his pocket he called Philip, giving them the general direction of the cabin they were at. Alexandra clung to her father as she watched the boy tearing her captors limb by limb. The fighting seized within few minutes and the boy stood there covered in blood. He was there when the men brought her in. The men had hit her when she wouldn't stop crying and the boy jumped in front of her taking the hits that were meant for her. 

When he wouldn't stop fighting them, they shot him with their gun, but he still stood in front of her and wouldn't allow them anywhere near her.

"Hey," Alexa called softly as she left her father's embrace and walked towards the boy–the urge to get closer to the boy was stronger.

"Alexa... No!" Victor tried to stop her.

Alexa didn't believe for an instance that the boy will hurt her. His dark eyes turned towards her as he stood rooted to his spot. "Are you okay?" She asked advancing towards him. "It's okay. I'm safe," she said again and raised her hands to touch him.

The boy flinched otherwise stood unmoving. She caressed his face and he closed his eyes inhaling deeply. Victor was terrified and made no noise–he was afraid that if he made a noise it will set the boy off and he will hurt Alexa. The boy’s claws retracted slowly and when he opened his eyes it was back to its normal black color.

Alexa caught the boy as he collapsed and held his head on her lap. Victor could hear shouts coming from outside and Philip rushed in with the backup team much to his relief.

Victor, Vernon and the boy was loaded into the ambulance within a matter of minutes and was sent off to the hospital. The cops at the scene were shocked to see the bodies. It appeared as if they were mauled by an animal.

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Amanda embraced her daughter and thanked the Gods for keeping her safe. The night was a blur as the hospital staff rushed in and out of the rooms. Amanda sat outside the emergency waiting for the doctor to emerge.

She relaxed when the doctor said that Victor was safe. The bullet has grazed no vital organs and it was only a flesh wound though he lost blood. Vernon's spleen was ruptured, but he will survive and as for the boy the bullet has passed through his body and did not affect his vital organs. They had stitched him up and gave him blood transfusion.

It was early in the morning when Amanda returned home with Alexa. She has informed the moving company not to come. She rested for a while before going to visit Victor again; she did not ask Alexa anything about the incident. She did not want her daughter worried.

If anything she wanted her daughter to forget about this day. Meanwhile, Alexa laid there with her mother, her mind wandering towards the mysterious boy, who saved her day.

She prayed for his and her father's recovery as she fell asleep in her mother’s embrace.