ROBBY

He pounded the car horn several times cursing under his breath at the traffic jam by the University entrance.

" Fuck, moove, " Robby murmured as he pounded on his car horn again the sound blaring in the evening air. " Move!"

When he saw a little opening between the Nissan Sentra and the Toyota Corolla, Robby placed his foot on the gas and squeezed through it.

The young man behind the Sentra pounded on the steering wheel and the blare of his car horn was heard. He blew it several times raising his arms at Robby.

On an ordinary day, Robby would have given way and waited for the street in front of him to clear up before he moved forward.

But tonight was not an ordinary night. He practically jumped into his car and sped dialed Marco after Angela explained why she knew of Dominic and Lance's plans to hurt Mia.

Robby tried dialing her number again but it was still switched off.

Damn it!

Robby still couldn't believe that Angela had sought help from Dominic to get her revenge on him. He thought he knew her enough to know that she would never be Dominic's accomplice. But he was wrong. Very wrong.

She confessed that they were initially planning to scare Mia with horrible gifts and mysterious notes but the tides turned a different direction after Dominic had an encounter with Marco in the study hall and Jason was not able to get Mia as his date for the Spunkz concert.

All of sudden, Alfred came into the picture and convinced Dominic that their scare game needed to take a step up. Alfred wanted to hurt Mia. And in effect, Dominic wanted to hurt her too. Angela said that it was Alfred's long overdue revenge and he saw the perfect opportunity when she sought Dominic's help.

His ex-girlfriend didn't know exactly what they were planning to do. They kept her in the dark when she didn't agree on hurting Mia or anyone. She only knew they were planning to do it tonight because she overheard Dominic and Lance talking a few days ago.

Robby growled at the cars as he did a couple of sharp turns and was finally speeding on the University street. His knuckles hurt from grasping the steering wheel so tight but he had to get to Mia as fast as he can.

His heart pounded when he saw the dark building. It didn't look like there were still students taking the exam.

He parked his car and quickly jumped out of the car running towards the building's double doors. He pushed it open and from where he stood, he knew the exam room was deserted. He checked it anyway.

" Mia, " he called out in the dark and Robby heard echoes.

Fuck. Where could she be? Did Dominic get to her already?

Robby felt his stomach went queasy at the thought and he tried to ignore horrible images running in his mind.

" Mia! " He shouted again as he circled the building.

There was no answer.

Her ran out of the building and checked the areas surrounding it.

Nothing.

" Mia! " He shouted again hoping to hear her answer.

Hoping to hear anything than the silence that was engulfing the area.

" Fuck, " He cursed and quickly took his phone from his pocket.

Think, Gonzales. He told himself as he tried to calm his himself. Think. Don't Panic. Maybe she just went somewhere while waiting for him.

" Marga, " Robby breathed. " Have you seen Mia? Are you with her?"

" I left her almost an hour ago. She didn't want me to give her a ride," Marga said on the other line and he could hear panic in her voice. " Is she not there? What's going on? "

" I can't find her. Her phone's switched off " Robby admitted in frustration. " And the exam hall is deserted. I checked everywhere."

" She ran out of battery, " Marga told him. " Maybe she grew tired of waiting for you and got a ride from someone? "

It was likely to happen but was just unlike Mia to take off without informing him.

" I don't know, " Robby said as he slowly walked to the front part of the building.

He was about to go inside again when he spotted a red haired girl walking towards his direction.

" Marga, I've got to go, " Robby ended the call and walked briskly towards the girl.

When she saw him, her eyes widened and she quickly retreated to the direction of the parking lot.

" Hey, " Robby called out as he ran after her. " Wait!"

She quickened her pace when she heard his voice but Robby quickly caught up with her and took her by the shoulders.

Her eyes were wide in fear when she turned and faced him. " Wh-what do you want? "

" It's okay. I just want to ask you a few things, " Robby said gently loosening his grip on her shoulders. " Are you a sophomore?  Do you know Mia Sebastian? Slender, fair complexion, long black hair, grayish green eyes. She was wearing dark jeans and white shirt today."

The girl just stared at him nervously as she swallowed hard.

" Do you know her? Have you seen her? " Robby continued his barrage of questions. " We're supposed to meet here after the exams."

The girl slowly nodded.

" Where did she go? Did she tell you where she was going?"

The girl shook her head as she stared at Robby mutely.

Robby saw the name engraved on the girls necklace which was peeking out of her t-shirt. He could sense that she knew more than she's telling.

" Tania, " Robby said in an urgent voice. " I need your help. Have you seen Mia? Have you seen her?"

Tania blinked when he mentioned her name. Swallowing hard, she opened her mouth to speak.

" They took her, " she said in a low shaky voice. " I saw the car drove in. I was curious to see who it was bec- because the car was heavily tinted. So I drove back quietly and hid my car."

Robby's grip on her tightened.

" They took her and put something on her face " Tania said in a frantic voice. " They took her inside the car. They took her. "

Robby felt anger surged through him the same time fear creeped in. His head was spinning and horrible thoughts squirmed to his mind.

" Who took her Tania? " Robby didn't drop his hands on her shoulders and squeezed it. " Tell me who took her."

" I don't know all of them, " Tania said slowly. " But there was this big guy. And I think he's called Dom. I heard them call him a few times."

Color drained Robby's face. Tania has just confirmed his worse fears.

Dominic and Lance got her. And they were going to do something horrible to her.

Robby dropped his hands off Tania's shoulders and rubbed his face.

" Fuck, " he shouted angrily and saw Tania jumped in fright.

Where did they take her? Where could Dominic and Lance hid her?

He will never forgive himself if something happened to Mia. He can never forgive himself if they've hurt her. He can never forgive them if they touched her.

" I know where they took her, " Tania blurted out.

Robby's head snapped to her face and he quickly took one of her arms and dragged her inside his car.

She guided him to the right direction and Robby realized they didn't go far. They stopped outside the Botanical Garden which Robby remembered Alfred's family owned.

Before getting out, Robby quickly sent Marco his location.

" Stay here, " He told Tania and she nodded at him meekly.

Robby quietly crept his way inside the garden and made his way to where the male voices were coming from.

Hiding behind a bush, he saw them, their back facing him: Alfred, Dominic, Lance and six other guys whom Robby recognized as active members of the fraternity.

There were nine of them and Robby didn't know anything about their fighting skills so he could not assess if he can take down all of them and get Mia and himself out of there alive.

As much as he hated waiting, Robby knew he needed to wait for back up if he wanted Mia and himself to get out of there in one piece.

He reached for a rectangular piece of wood from the back of his jeans and gripped it tightly. He was never fond of owning any sort of weapon but at that moment, he was grateful that his brother had tucked a blade in his car for emergency.

Tonight qualified as one.

Robby was pulling out his knife from its sheath when he caught sight of a lone figure lying on the ground covered in blood.

Robby sucked in his breath.

Jason. Was he dead?

Fuck. He cursed at the thought as he eyed Jason lying motionless on the ground.

He needed to get Mia out of there. Fast.

" You are a lovely sight just like your sister, " Alfred then spoke as he bent down.

Robby couldn't see what was in front of Alfred but he knew without a doubt that it was Mia.

He heard a muffled shout and Robby knew it Mia.

" You are right, Cortez, " It was Dominic who spoke this time as he watched Alfred stood up. " She has a very very pretty face."

" I will enjoy every moment that I will have with you, " Lance said in a sinister voice.

They all laughed and it made Robby's blood boil, his hand curled tightly on the knife's handle.

Dominic shifted his legs as he leaned over to whisper something to Alfred. It was then that Robby caught sight of Mia.

Robby gaped at the sight of her.

She was seated on the ground with her two legs folded behind her. He could see her arms were behind her body most likely hands tied together. There was a handkerchief tied on her mouth extending to the back of her head. Her white shirt was ripped on the shoulders and where her stomach was exposing her fair skin.

It was splattered with red stains which Robby could only guess as blood. Her face was dirty, her jaws and eyes were swollen, bleeding even. There were cuts on her cheeks and Robby could almost make out the blood coming seeping through the white cloth over her mouth.

" Let's make this night interesting, shall we? " Alfred said in a singsong voice. " Remove her gag."

One of the men moved towards Mia and untied the cloth on her mouth revealing her swollen and bleeding lips.

" Enjoying the evening Ms. Sebastian? " Dominic sneered folding his arms across his chest.

" You cowards, " Mia hissed at them, her voice almost inaudible.

Alfred laughed and walked towards her. " Cowardice is Jason's style, little one. Not ours."

In one swift movement, his hand strike her on the face and Mia staggered backward.

Robby gritted his teeth as he slowly walked towards the group, trying not to make a single sound.

Get your hands off her!

Mia managed to sit right up as she spit blood on the ground. Even from afar, Robby could see blood coming out from her nose.

" Is that all you've got?" She snorted.

Stop talking Mia. Robby wanted to shout at her as he crouched behind a bush ready to attack one of Dominic's men who was standing guard.

Stop provoking them.

He knew she was tough but she needed to choose her battles wisely. She can't just taut nine guys and expect them to pat her on the back. They won't. They'll break her bones into fucking pieces.

Robby saw Alfred growled at Mia's challenge. He lifted his right foot and kicked her hard on the stomach.

Robby took that opportunity to quietly grab the guy by the bushes. Placing a hand on the guy's mouth, he quickly knocked him to unconsciousness.

Robby heard Mia groaned in pain as she fell to the ground. He saw her roll to one side moaning in pain.

Robby quietly moved closer to where Lance and Dominic were standing as he clenched his jaw as the sound and sight of her in pain.

He had just crouched behind a nearby bush when he saw Dominic strode towards Mia and kicked her on her ribs that she screamed in agony and curled into a fetal position.

Robby's blood ran cold at her scream.

Fuck. Robby thought angrily as he stood up to get a better view of the people he was shortly going to attack.

He saw Dominic raise his foot again and kicked her several times on her torso.

" Take that, bitch " Dominic said angrily as he spitted on her.

Mia cried out in pain as she curled herself tighter that her head was almost touching her knees.

Damn it! Robby felt himself shake in fury at the sound of Mia's cries. Damn you, Gamboa!

Robby saw Dominic raise his foot towards Mia again and Robby lost it.

Forgetting to calculate his steps and ignoring the number of men he'd be up against, Robby tackled Dominic to the ground before his foot can hit Mia again.

Robby tossed her a quick glance and his vision darkened at the sight of Mia writhing in pain. With ragged breath, his curled fist landed on Dominic again and again until he fell to the ground.

Robby's body filled with rage at the broken sight of her and he could feel his vision turning darker and darker as if the world has suddenly dimmed its light.

He quickly jumped up and bent his knees in combat position standing in front of Mia shielding her from more attacks.

" Nice to see you again, Gonzales, " Alfred's face curled into a nasty smile. " Saving your girl?"

Robby grunted in response as three of Alfred's men came running towards him.

He shoved one of the men backwards and he went flying to the guy behind him crashing to the ground. He pulled the third man closer and punched his face three to four times leaving an ugly bruised in his eyes. He dragged the third man on the ground and shove him towards Alfred.

Alfred motioned for the two other guys to attack Robby.

They appraised him and nodded at each other. They took their positions around him their hands balled into fist arms folded in front of them.

Robby eyed each one not willing to show any kind of weakness.

They attacked him at the same time.

Robby managed to avoid every punch but was caught by surprise when one of his attacker kicked him behind his knees and he fell to the ground. Thinking they now have advantage, they punched his face and Robby bent backwards when a fist hit his face. They lifted their legs to go for a kick but Robby quickly punched their knees causing them to fell on the ground. Robby quickly jumped up and kicked their chests hard so they staggered backwards and lain on the ground.

He quickly wiped the blood off his lips with the back of his hand and turned his attention to Alfred and Lance.

They were running towards him and Robby held his ground as he stood in front of Mia. Lance was drawing near and Robby could almost feel the punch that he threw at him.

But it never hit him. Someone has abruptly stood between him and Lance and took the blow for him.

" You son of a bitch! " Marco growled as Lance's fist landed on his neck. He quickly pushed Lance backwards and kicked him hard on the stomach. Lance dropped on the ground, moaning.

Marco glanced and nodded at Robby and his eyes roamed the scene until it landed and lingered on Mia curled on the ground. He growled at the sight of her.

" We got this, " Bryan was panting as he stood beside Marco.

Marco snapped his head to Bryan and they faced a surprised Alfred and staggering Lance in anger.

Robby watched the two pairs tangled up in a fist fight. After ensuring that they were getting the upper hand,  Robby rushed to where Mia was lying on the ground.

" Mia, " He bent down, placed his arms behind her and pulled her up that her head was cradled in his arms.

Her eyes were closed but Robby could hear her ragged breathing.

" I'm sorry, " Robby choked staring at her bleeding face gently caressing it.

She winced as his fingers lightly touched her face.

" Rob, " she whispered her eyes still close. " I-I'mokay,"

But she wasn't okay. She looked beaten up, her clothes almost ripped in different places, her face swollen and bleeding from her cuts. She seemed to be in great pain at every movement.

She slowly opened her swollen eyesand saw Robby's disheveled look.

" Rob, " she said softly, alarm in her voice, when she saw his bleeding lips. " You're hurt."

If he wasn't so worried about her, he would have laughed.

" You scared me, " Robby told her softly.

Here she was, badly beaten, yet she was not concerned with herself. She was more worried of the small cuts Robby has on his face.

She coughed and Robby helped her move to her sides. He rubbed her back as she kept on coughing.

Robby quickly took out his handkerchief and placed it on Mia's mouth. She held on to it as she continued coughing violently.

When her cough ceased, Robby helped her eased back in his arms. As he did, his eyes caught a quick sight of his hanky smeared in bright red blood.

His eyes widened and he felt fear creeping inside him.

" Rob, " she murmured bringing him to drag his eyes from his bloodied handkerchief to her face.

Her eyes were shut and Robby felt her shudder against him. Her labored breathing was scaring him and he knew she needed urgent medical attention.

" Stay with me, " Robby whispered holding on to her hand as he watched the rise and fall of her chest.

A few minutes later, Marco and Bryan joined him to where Mia was. Alfred and Lance were both unconscious on the hard ground.

" Is she-? " Marco's face paled when he saw her eyes closed.

" We need to get her to the hospital, " Robby told him and they exchanged frightened looks.

Marco quickly nodded and took his phone from his pocket. He stood up and Robby could hear him talking to Melissa.

It was half an hour before Melissa arrived with the police and ambulance in tow.

Six hours later, after giving his statement to the police, Robby returned to the hospital
where Mia was treated and was finally resting in the private room.

Marco was still at the police station identifying the guys who kidnapped Mia. Melissa, meanwhile, went home after making sure Mia was settled in her room to get her sister some fresh clothes.

The doctor required Mia to stay in the hospital for a few days.

Robby walked near her and quietly pulled a chair close to her bed.

There were bandages on her face and he could see both cheeks were turning into an ugly shade of purple. The cut on her lips and eyes had dried out but Robby could still see that they were swollen.

There were several cuts and big scratches on her arms as if she was dragged on the ground. Robby didn't even want to think about how she got those. It made him want to go back to the police station and kill Alfred.

His eyes wandered her body and knew that underneath her hospital clothes, there were bandages around her broken ribs. His eyes landed on her legs. One foot was in a thick cast elevated on four pillows.

Robby took a sharp breath at the sight of her. It felt like someone had poured cold water on him.

He should have been there sooner. This wouldn't have happened to her.

His hands balled into fists as he stared at her angrily.

Alfred and her croonies should be put in jail. There was no way that he will agree on a monetary settlement. They need to be put behind bars.

" Robby?" Mia's voice brought him back to the hospital room.

Robby quickly stood up and brushed her hair with his hands.

" Hey, " he said softly as he gazed into her tired eyes. " Did I wake you up? "

" No, " Mia answered in a hoarse voice.

Robby's heart went out to her. He could imagine what she went through tonight and how scared she might have