Chapter 7
Levi sharply inhaled as his movements sent a wave of pain throughout his body. He was in pain from King's blows but it was nothing too serious, though he felt his side might be bleeding again. The table was still intact but Levi knew he would have even more bruises if he lived to see another day. He glanced over at Petra and could see concern on her face. It was strange seeing that sort of expression for him and it quickly changed to one of relief when she saw he was okay.
Levi turned back to his opponent, hating that he was being beaten so easily. Had Levi not already been hurt and been eating regularly then this fight would have been taking a different direction. But Levi was tired. Tired of running and hiding and never feeling safe. It had been almost a year since he had to leave his former life behind.
I just need to find the right opportunity to use this. Levi's hand hovered over his hidden weapon briefly. He couldn't pull it out just yet, not if wanted to make it out alive. He would just get shot by King's men if they saw it on him. Two of them still had their guns raised towards him and the last one had his held to Petra. Levi didn't want to kill anyone but to save himself and Petra he would be willing to do it. The black-haired man would feel little guilt in ending the lives of the men before him.
Levi shook himself of his wandering thoughts when King began to near him. The hulking man smirked as he charged at him with one fist raised, probably thinking he had won already. Levi vowed to make sure he wiped that expression off of his face.
Levi dropped to the floor when King swung at him and aimed a kick at King's leg. It connected and succeeded in unbalancing the larger man. King cried out in surprise as he tried to right himself but still landed back first on the ground. Before Levi could act, the man rolled over and got back to his feet. The shorter man backed up in response.
"You're going to pay for that one." King growled as he stepped back and grabbed a chair. He threw it at Levi but the shorter man quickly sidestepped it. It hit the floor near one of the gang members and broke into two pieces. Levi didn't turn around to see which one.
"Hey!" The man yelled in surprise. Had that hit him, it would have hurt.
"Shut up." King ordered his man as he grabbed another chair. Levi dodged that one when it was thrown at him as well. King began to lose patience and charged once again. He would not let the bum send him to the ground this time. It had been humiliating that it had happened once.
Levi blocked the punch aimed at his face and anticipated the next one would be aimed at his side. He was correct and was able to sidestep the blow. Levi used the opportunity to punch King's gut but it seemed largely ineffective. The bigger man grunted in pain but didn't falter. King's hand shot out and seized the collar of Levi's shirt and dragged him closer.
Levi grabbed the man's arm with both of his hands and tried to force the hand to let go but he could not. Instead, Levi used his grip on the man's arm as leverage and the close proximity to kick at King's leg once again, this time aiming for the knee. It caused King to stumble and the Titan Leader was not able to strike Levi with his fist as he had been proceeding to do. Levi then aimed at the other knee and heard the pain in the bigger man's voice when he shouted.
"You fucking bastard!" King swore loudly, anger evident in his voice. The grip on Levi's collar had weakened enough that he could break free and Levi did just that. He then backed up once more, putting distance between him and his opponent. Levi took a deep breath. He was doing better than he expected so far.
Levi was not paying attention to King's men so he was not able to dodge the chair that hit him in the back. He stumbled at the blow and King seized the opportunity and rushed the shorter man. The Titans' leader brought his fist back and then slugged Levi hard across the face. Levi tried to back away but he was hit once more, this time sending him to the ground. He cried out as he felt the bigger man kick him hard as lay stunned on the floor, hearing laughter from one of King's men.
"Stop it!" Levi heard Petra shout. Her voice reminded him of all that was at stake and he focused on King once more as the man raised his leg to stomp on him. Levi shifted and kicked out at King's other leg. With the other leg raised, King could not regain his balance. The bigger man hit the ground face first this time and Levi leapt to his feet. As the man got to his knees to get up Levi pulled out the knife. King stilled when he felt the cold metal of the blade against his throat. King's men did not realize what was happening quickly enough to react. Levi quickly forced the Titan's leader to shift so that Levi's back to the glass windows. None of King's men were behind him in this position
"Move and I kill him." Levi threatened. King's men stood wide-eyed at the turn around.
"You didn't fucking check him for weapons, you imbeciles!" King roared but did not move. He could feel the cold chill of fear run throughout his body.
"Drop your weapons and let the girl go. Now." Levi ordered. The men hesitated, not knowing what to do. Levi noticed one man shift and was able to push King into the line of fire before the man pulled the trigger of his weapon. When he did, it was King's shoulder that the bullet tore through and not Levi's head.
"AAARGH!" King screamed in pain. He used his hand to clutch the wound, moving more than Levi liked. Levi pressed the blade harder to his captive's throat. Once again he stopped moving but he was still making sounds of pain. Blood quickly began to drip down the man's shoulder.
"Oh shit." The man, Levi remembered his name was Zach, who fired the gun looked shocked at what had happened. He looked at his gun and then at King, who was glaring at him though his pain. The unfortunate man knew King would not forgive him for this. Zach took off for the door, hoping to run far away from King's wrath. He did not make it. Petra screamed as there was another gunshot and the fleeing man's body hit the ground a few feet from the door, some of his blood spraying on the windows. She stared wide-eyed at the body before averting her eyes. The young woman felt the urge to throw up but stopped herself from doing so. She needed to keep calm.
The scarred man lowered his gun when he saw that he had fired true. No one fled the Titans. It was an immediate death sentence.
Levi did not react to the death of the man, remaining unflinching with his captive in front of him.
"Drop... Your guns!" King ordered, gritting his teeth from the pain. Both his remaining men hesitated. "I said... Drop your guns!"
The scarred man, obviously more loyal than any of the others, placed his gun on the ground. He didn't believe either the homeless man or the girl would actually kill them. Without King, the Titans would be no more and he would not allow that. The scarred man loved the power he had over people as a member of the Titans and he would not give that up.
"He'll just kill us if he gets them." Luke reasoned and did not drop his own weapon. "I got the girl too. He can't do anything unless he wants her to die."
Petra's heart raced as she watched this exchange. This might be their only opportunity to get out of this alive. She needed to help or she would end up like the man on the floor. The thought of the dead man caused her body to shake but Petra forced herself to calm down. The young woman turned her head to look at the man holding onto the back of her shirt and found that he was focusing on his leader. Luke's gun was no longer pointed at her. He seemed to have forgotten about her or maybe thought she would cause no trouble since she had not done so already. If Petra could grab the gun they could get out of this alive.
When Luke looked over at the scarred man, Petra inhaled and made her move. She elbowed the man as hard as she possibly could in the gut and heard him grunt in pain. Her hands then shot out and snatched at the gun before Luke could react. He did not let go of it easily and Petra struggled a few moments before she got it out of his grip. As one of his hands was still gripping her shirt, she had an advantage.
Petra then pointed it at her captor, who let go of her and backed away. Her hands shook as she held the weapon. She had never used a gun before but it was simple right? Just pull the trigger and fire. The young woman hoped she wouldn't have to do it though. She didn't think she could take a life.
"Good job." Levi praised her, proud that Petra had overcome her fear to act. He hadn't expected her to help but it was both welcome and needed. He truly believed they had a chance now.
I'm not great with action scenes but I tried. Hopefully this makes sense!
Thank you so much for the reviews!
