Fight

After finishing the final report on Francesca's case, Kathrina stretched her body. They were able to secure Bianca's written and verbal confirmation today that stated Alex Frank was indeed an abusive husband who kept lashing at his wife whenever he felt like it.

"Trash."

Kathrina cursed under her breath. A man like Alex Frank deserved to rot in jail for killing Francesca and for the misery he had caused his wife for more than two years. She saw how badly his wife hurt, and honestly, Kathrina understood why Bianca tried to find solace from another man.

Kathrina's fingers clicked the send an email button on the old computer screen before her using a black mouse. She waited until the notification showed that her message had been successfully sent to the recipient.

It was already nine o'clock in the evening when she glanced at the wall clock. After that, she turned off her computer and picked up her jacket from the chair. She left her workstation in slow motion, not appearing to be in a rush to get home. Surprisingly, Kathrina's body was more energetic despite having a rough night, resulting in inadequate quality sleep. She was not tired at all, even though she had been busy all day.

When Kathrina finally reached her car, she was startled to see Bianca Frank standing right in front of her. Kathrina's eyes narrowed slightly because Bianca was not supposed to be there. Their interrogation with Bianca was over one and a half hours ago; hence, she ought to be at home.

"Mrs. Frank?" Kathrina said softly, and she tapped Bianca's left shoulder lightly. In order to not scare her.

Contrary to what Kathrina had anticipated, Bianca Frank jumped in terror. The woman's eyes were wide as a sign of shock. Bianca covered her mouth with her left hand as her right hand caressed the left side of her chest.

"It's Kathrina. I'm sorry If I scared you."

Bianca answered shortly after Kathrina, "Oh no, it's okay." She cast a downward glance to her dark-brown flat shoes.

In an effort to mask the wave of anxiety coursing through her body, Bianca played with her hands. She appeared hesitant to ask Kathrina for assistance as she chewed her lip.

"Do you need my help, Mrs. Frank? It's okay. You can tell me." Kathrina held Bianca's shoulder as the woman's body vibrated wildly with each passing second.

"Can you take me to my home? I am afraid…." Bianca's voice broke, "I know Alex won't be there, but I'm afraid he would try to kill me out of anger." The woman wailed; she looked exactly like a scared animal.

"Okay," Kathrina stated. "Please make yourself comfortable, Mrs. Frank." She opened the door for Bianca and let the woman settle on her seat. After that, she took the driving seat.

Before she started the engine, Kathrina gave her a box of tissues to Bianca. Then, she ensured that Bianca would feel comfortable during the trip to her home.

"Do you want me to play music for you?" Kathrina asked, glancing at her. There was a trace of worry in her. She wanted to console Bianca and give her a few comfort words, but it wasn't Kathrina's specialty. She was afraid the words that came out of her mouth would bring more damage, so all she offered was only to be the silent company to her.

The ride to Bianca's home would take at least an hour's drive. The small vehicle cleaved the road in silence, passing numerous high-rise structures. The flicker of lights from the streetlamp and other transportation gave the nuance of serenity, even though it was fake. From time to time, Kathrina could hear Bianca sniffing from time to time. The woman tried so hard to conceal her misery from Kathrina's vision. Sadly, Bianca's effort was futile because Kathrina could detect it when people were in pain.

As their trip continued, Kathrina and Bianca drifted into their respective minds. They were giving each other space to indulge in their own problems.

Right in front of Bianca's house, Kathrina came to a complete stop. She watched Bianca twitch in her seat as she cocked her head to the side. "Would you like me to go with you? "

With her eyes filled with tears, Bianca looked at Kathrina as if she were her savior and said, "I'd be glad if you would do that, Detective."

"Okay, let's go.

They moved swiftly in the direction of Bianca's house's front door. Kathrina's eyes flicked left and right to check for any strange movement around the area. She noticed the window on her left was left open.

"Do you usually leave your windows like that?" Seeing Bianca shake her in response, Kathrina became alarmed. She approached the location with small, wary steps while gesturing for Bianca to stand back. Her hand clutched the gun that was holstered to her waistband.

Kathrina touched the white curtain with her left hand; she yanked it to the left side in a quick and rough manner. Her gaze carefully seized parts of the house that could be seen from the windows. The lamp was off so that she could see nothing from her position. Nevertheless, she could feel that something she did not like would happen.

"Open your door, Mrs. Frank, and after that, stay behind. I'll check your house first. Then, if I do not come up after five minutes, call the police immediately." She gave her instructions with a whispering voice.

The joint of the doors made a quaking sound when Kathrina pushed it open with a bit of strength. Kathrina took out her gun from the holster, held it with both of her hands, and positioned it on the front sight between the rearview. She took a small step to the house; as the seconds ticked by, she could feel the tense atmosphere getting thicker. Her left hand then tried to find the light switch by touching the walls.

Skiirrt, the sound of a table hitting the floor could be heard. Kathrina jerked her head in that direction. She squinted her eyes in an effort to make her vision better, but to no avail; she could not detect any movement after that sound. So then, she decided to look for the light switch again; this time, she moved faster.

Kathrina's palm touched every surface of the wall until she could feel something. She took a deep breath, mentally counted to ten, then turned the lights on.

"You bitch!" Alex Frank ran as fast as lightning to sneak an attack. He struck Kathrina in the back of her head with his hand. He used all of his strength to strike her with more force.

Kathrina's body dropped to the floor. She adjusted her view to the light for a second. Then her eyes snapped at Alex Frank. That man looked furious beyond measurement. Right, that man must have been pissed since he was going to prison; that's why his last straw to his sanity snapped. The one in front of her was definitely a madman; talking would not work on him. So, fighting was the only answer.

She eyed the gun two meters from her and tried to move one of her feet to reach it. However, as if sensing the movement she made, Alex kicked the rifle till it was out of her reach, then he leaped on her like a ferocious animal.

Alex Frank's hands were on Kathrina's neck; he put so much force on it that he could squeeze the life out of her. He laughed when he saw Kathrina writhing beneath him.

Yes, this is how it should be. Women under him, battling for their dear life. Kathrina's expression was almost the same as Francesca's when she tried to catch just a little oxygen to save her life. Alex laughed as though he had nothing to worry about; his expression showed the face of a monster.

"Look at you, Detective. So fucking weak." He exclaimed; his voice was full of wrath. He closed the gap between them, "You are going to be dead in no time, and you won't even be able to fight it." Once again, Alex laughed in front of her face till his spit landed on her face

Kathrina struggled to stay conscious while trying to retain her composure. She made her best effort to breathe in, but Alex's grip on her neck was getting firmer. Her chest felt tighter than before. She would die if she did not fight this lunatic man.

Kathrina kicked Alex in the groin with all the force she could muster. The hands that were tightly gripping her neck began to loosen as the man writhed in agony. Then, taking the chance, Kathrina started to give him a hard punch in his stomach.

One, two, three until Alex whimpered in pain.

Knowing the man was focused on the ache on his body, Kathrina seized the moment. She pushed the man to the left side and then moved as far as possible from him. She coughed for a while and tried to inhale oxygen as much as possible to fill her lungs. Unfortunately, Alex recovered faster than she expected. Before Alex could pounce on her again, she crawled to get her gun. She wondered how long it would take for the aid to come here. Surely Mrs. Frank already called them, right?

Just as Kathrina almost reached her gun, Alex took hold of her short hair. Without batting an eye, the man smashed Kathrina's body against the wall till she screamed loudly. Kathrina countered Alex by throwing her fist at his face; a sound of a crack followed her punch. She was sure Alex's nose must be broken by now. The man slapped her until she could feel the taste of blood in her mouth. Both did not stop; they kept throwing punches at each other, trying to hit one another's vital points.

"I should have used a knife on you, bitch." Alex spat on her and launched another punch to Kathrina's stomach. "It would be easier to kill you."

"Stop talking, bastard."

Suddenly, the loud sound of a siren could be heard. Kathrina felt like she could finally breathe more easily, while Alex looked like he had just realized he was doomed. The man stopped his hand midway. His mind began to plot his escape from the situation right away.

Alex spotted the nearest window five steps away from his current standing place. He immediately started running towards his sole door of escape.

"Not so fast," Kathrina said. She grabbed his left leg. Using her weight, she tried to make him fall back to the floor. In resistance, Alex kicked her hands mercilessly, but she wouldn't budge. He saw the corner of Kathrina's lips lift in a satisfied smile. With that smile, he knew then that there was no way out.

The sound of several people rushing into the house was enough to make the color on Alex's face drain; Alex was so pale that he practically looked like a corpse. His eyes darted to the front, disregarding the fact that Kathrina was still holding onto his legs. Alex's shoulder finally slumped in resignation.