As I sat still calmly on the chair, my mind was having a full-blown panic attack. I knew if I showed any sign of distress call, I would be shot to pieces.

I observed the room. My father and brothers were discussing the new deal. The boys were too focused on the discussion too. My bodyguards stood there motionless in the back of the room.

Come on Talia, think! This was not a good time for my mind to be blank. Or rather blank, I could only remember the Tiktok videos I've endlessly scrolled. This is a disaster.

Then I remembered! The slip of paper that Mr. Jarrett gave me. I needed to find a way to give it to my family or one of the boys.

Right now is probably not a good time so I guess I'll have to wait until the end of the meeting.

Those few hours that I've waited till the end of the meeting felt like the longest hours of my life. Not only will I have to think fast when it's over, but I also have four people having me at gunpoint.

My worries were short-lived when everyone started standing up. I stood up too and my eyes directly connected with Mr. Jarrett.

"Talia, can I have a word with you outside?" He asked.

"Absolutely not who-" Alex tried to argue but I cut him off.

"No! Alex it's fine. It's just a word." I say.

My bodyguards looked like they were about to take action too.

He tried to stop me from leaving but I grabbed his arms and said, "No Alex. Stop. I'll be back, it's just talking."

Mr. Jarrett and I left the room and he took me near the elevators.

"Good. Now you have to act like everything is okay so the employee won't get suspicious." He says and I felt the tip of a gun at the back of my shoulder.

We walked over to the elevator and my cheeks were sore from forcefully smiling at people when they asked me about the man next to me.

As we were nearing the elevators, I heard the voice that brought me safety for years.

"Stop right there!"

I turned to see Alex standing pointing a gun at us. Behind him were the other 3 boys, my father, and my brothers. They also have gums pointing at us.

"Alexander. What's the problem?" Mr. Jarrett says trying to hide the fact that he tried to kidnap me.

"Well...I should be asking you that. Care to explain this?!" Alex yelled while pulling out the slip of paper I gave him.

Thank god! He got my message. When I rudely yelled at him earlier, I grabbed his arms and forcefully shoved him the paper. I'm glad he didn't question it.

When Mr. Jarrett saw the paper, he narrowed his eyes and shot the bullets to the ceiling. A chorus of screams filled the air and the workers all hid for safety.

Mr. Jarrett roughly pulled my hair back and spat harshly next to my ears, "You little bitch! You knew what would happen if you tried something funny!"

At the sight of the action, my father couldn't control himself he shot a bullet at Mr. Jarrett. It missed because he was quick enough to pull us to the sides.

 But out of nowhere, four of Mr. Jarrett's men came out and pulled out their guns too.

I was standing in the middle of gunfire. Again. Talk about déjà vu!

"If I were you I wouldn't try that again Dimitri. Or else your precious little daughter dies." Mr. Jarrett taunts.

At this moment, my father was raging as well as the boys.

"Now sweetheart. Could you be a gem and press the elevator button?" He says sickly sweet to me.

I hesitated not wanting to do it but when I felt a click that meant the safety was off behind me, I had no choice but to do what he asked.

The tension when we waited for the elevator to come up was unbearable. I wanted to cry out because I didn't know what to do anymore. All I wanted was to kick this bastard behind me where the sun doesn't shine.

After what felt like an eternity of waiting for the elevator to come up, a TING was heard meaning it has arrived.

"It was a pleasure doing business with you gentlemen. But I'm sorry I have to leave early. Goodbye." Mr. Jarrett smirked.

"Goodbye asshole!"

BANG

I gasped as the figure of Mr. Jarrett falls down behind me. Then four gunshots were heard as his men went down too. I looked up to see my bodyguards in the elevator.

A body ran to me and checked for any injuries. Alex. He embraced me and I buried my face in his chest. The next thing I know, I was surrounded by my boys looking at me with concern written all over their faces.

After this day, I was just glad I'm not dead yet. I'm never going to take being alive for granted again. You'll never know when a man like Mr. Jarrett will come and screw up your day.