17 No sign of fear

In an instant, the sound of bullets disrupted the tranquility, assaulting the car's exterior with a relentless barrage. Dents adorned the once-immaculate mirror, all signs pointed to the unyielding assault.

Despite the car's bulletproof armor, the assailants showed no inclination to relent.

Blake, driven by instinct, cowered between the seats, scared shitless!

Hands clamped over his ears, eyes squinted against the chaotic onslaught, he sought refuge from the deadly percussion.

As abruptly as the storm began, the shots ceased, leaving behind a thick veil of smoke.

A vital hit had breached the car's defenses, and smoke billowed from the front, obscuring any view through the now-battered windshield.

*Shroooooooooo*

There was the sound of something leaking coming from the front of the car the whole time.

Amid the enveloping haze, Blake, anticipating the worst, cautiously opened his eyes. To his astonishment, his boss, Rose Shelly, sat perched on her seat with regal elegance. Not a strand of her hair seemed out of place.

In that fleeting moment, Blake glimpsed something profound in her gaze—not fear or anxiety, but unbridled rage. Unadulterated anger seath beneath those eyes of hers.

What was more troubling was that this Rage he noticed wasn't bubbling over. It was a calm storm.

"Reggie," Rose's command pierced through the tension.

Reggie sat at the driver's side, having the front row view of the chaos was just as nonchalant as Rose was. He too appeared unbothered by the fact that they were just shot at moments ago.

The stoic driver turned without a hint of hesitation to face who called him.

"Can you quieten them? The noise makes my ears bleed."Rose with an icy tone requested.

Reggie, with a nod that befuddled Blake, initiated a motion that suggested the unlocking of the car doors. The metallic click echoed, and Reggie, unswayed by the chaos, ventured outside into the swirling smoke that covered the vehicle.

Rose redirected her attention to Blake, her voice now warmer, yet an intense heat emanated from her. "Are you hurt?"

"I'm fine... I'm...I'm fine," Blake stammered, still gripped by the residual tension. Rising from the car floor, he sought a vantage point to survey the unfolding chaos.

Simultaneously, bullets erupted once more, this time directed away from the car as no impact was felt.

But as the guns started firing, voices could be heard yelling from outside as shots guns blazed the scene.

"Get him!" a voice bellowed.

"I can't see him. Where is he?!!" another voice echoed.

"Arrrghhhhh!!" Someone else screamed in pure agony.

Blake cringed, barely managing to remain on his seat. But seeing how Rose, a woman remained still, he encouraged himself to stay calm even when all his senses screamed the opposite.

Guttural yells continued outside the car where the shooting continued.

"Ahhh!! My balls!!!"

Voices of agony mingled with the smoke, but Rose, in stark contrast, sat unperturbed. Not a hint of tension, no frantic glances—she remained a study in composed tranquility.

"What's going on? Why are we being shot at?" Blake's voice pierced the rattling gunshots.

"It's fine. Let's leave," Rose casually suggested, pushing her car door open.

"No..no..no..we can't leave. What if we get hit?!" Blake protested.

"We won't. Reggie will make sure of it. Let's go," Rose asserted, an odd calmness pervading the tumult. Blake could barely believe what he just heard from her.

Was she being serious?!

Reggie was going to do what?

"No, I can't let you go out, it's too dangerous. You know what, I'll call the cops!" Blake, reaching for his phone, sought a conventional solution.

It might have sounded like a noble act but the truth still remained that he too never had the intention of leaving to begin with so allowing his boss outside where guns were being shot was not part of his agenda.

However, would he have gone out to stop her if she ventured out alone? Well…

As Rose watched Blake fumble with his phone, fear evidently taking hostage of his whole constitution, she said…

"No, don't call the cops. They won't make it here in time, and it would just be more blood spilled tonight. Trust me, no one is dying today," Rose intoned, her choice of words carrying an unsettling weight.

Something about the blood being spilled didn't seem to sound right coming out of her mouth. It felt more like a disturbance than an actual unfortunate incident if it were to happen when Rose said it.

"Your driver's out there. For all we know, the people shooting might be more than just enough. And I didn't see him even leaving with a gun!" Blake argued, grappling with the escalating fear.

Observing Blake's palpable fear, Rose, unfortunately, couldn't empathize.She could see how Blake was about to shit his pants and felt nothing more than empathy for him knowing he was scared of the worst happening.

The chaos remained mere background noise to her heightened senses. The worst part about this whole experience was the gun shot sound, it was unbearably loud and annoying to Rose. But she had to maintain her calm.

'If only she could tell him though,' she thought as she stared at Blake cowering in fear.

If only she could let him know that they were safe.All his worries were nothing before her.

Bullets? She chuckled at the thought of it.

But Blake didn't need to know he was safe. She was just going to do it. She was just going to be everything he needed without being more than his expectations. Sometimes it was better that way. Not everyone liked surprises and she was sure Blake didn't want to see the bag of tricks she had in store. So for now, she sat, watching.

While Blake anticipated the worst, Rose prepared to take laws into her hand if things did escalate though. But so far, nothing of that sort was needed.