20 A little taste of hell

"Help! Help me!!!"

The man instinctively moved, his hand poised to cover Abi's mouth, when a loud sound echoed behind him.

He spun around, and his eyes widened almost to the point of popping out of their sockets. The cubicle door he had locked was gone! It was as though the door had been torn from its hinges and hurled to the far end of the bathroom.

"W-wha-" His words were cut off as he was abruptly yanked. His body then collided hard with the cold wall. The impact left him dazed, his eyes losing focus as his head connected with the surface with a thud. A warm and sticky sensation began to trickle down the back of his head, and his hazy mind managed to deduce that it was his own blood, slowly dripping onto the floor.

"Bastard! Don't you know who I a–."

As he looked up, a large fist crashed into his face, preventing him from completing his sentence. The sickening sound of bones cracking – the unmistakable breaking of his nose – filled the air. He emitted a small, pitiful whimper, akin to a downtrodden mongrel, his hands instinctively flying to his face in a futile attempt to stem the torrent of blood gushing forth. His vision blurred, and all he could discern was the silhouette of a man looming over him.

Then, a large, powerful hand clamped around his neck, hoisting him up against the wall. He clawed desperately at the man's unyielding arm, but his efforts proved fruitless. The man's grip was as unyielding as steel, effortlessly pinning him as if he were a mere ant caught in his grasp.

"Did you touch her?" the man asked, his voice filled with restrained, murderous rage. The voice sounded like a call of death that his survival instincts immediately kicked in. He felt the bloodlust coming from this person and he knew that whoever this was would definitely not hesitate to kill him right then and there, without batting an eye. It was unmistakable – this was someone he should never have crossed paths with.

"N-no…" he choked out. "Y-you came befor-"

The man's grip tightened, stopping his words but he persevered. He didn't want to die! "J-j-ust her shoulders. I-I-I didn't… j-j-ust her shoulders…"

The man, Alexander Qinn, dropped the CEO on the ground. Without a word, he turned to look at the girl standing frozen behind him, her eyes locked onto his.

His eyes bore a cold, nearly menacing intensity as his gaze scrutinized her. Despite realizing she was physically unharmed, his bloodlust didn't waver; instead, it grew even more intense.

Glancing at the man now sprawled on the floor, bloodied and defeated, Alexander's seething fury transformed into a dark, deadly rage. 

Alexander Qinn seized the man by his collar and forced him to kneel on the floor before him. The CEO placed his hands on the ground to steady himself, fighting to remain upright when Alexander stepped on both of the man's hands – the hands that had touched her – exerting his weight as though intent on rendering them useless, as if he aimed to shatter them, ensuring they could never be used again.

The man's loud, harrowing scream echoed in the restroom, forcing Abi to close her eyes and cover her ears.

When she reopened her eyes, she witnessed Alexander delivering another punch to the man's face, rendering him unconscious.

A deep silence settled over the room, resembling the stillness that follows when a ferocious super typhoon finally subsides.

Alexander then slowly walked towards her. His face was still a mask of rage and bloodlust and she couldn't help but look away from him, her heart beating wildly. Her emotions were a mess.

When he was close enough to her, he leaned in and whispered in her ear,  "Abigail… this is just a little taste of hell. I told you… You can't handle it."

Seeing the horror written all over her face, he turned away, thinking that the girl was now undoubtedly too scared to even look at him. Good! You should be scared!

He began to move away, ready to leave her be, but before he could take a single step, he felt her frail arms encircle his waist, embracing him from behind. Her head found its place against his back, and he sensed his shirt growing damp from her tears. He could also feel her entire body trembling, a testament to the shock this ordeal had inflicted upon her.

Alexander's eyes widened. He had purposefully revealed to her the extent of violence he was capable of. So why? Why was this seemingly fragile girl still... she should be terrified of him! She should be fleeing from him as far and fast as possible! That's what any ordinary, rational person would do.

Disbelievingly, he ran his fingers through his hair, and in the next moment, his deadly aura somehow started to dissipate. He closed his eyes to gather his thoughts before taking a deep, quiet breath and gradually, he felt himself relax as the rage and murderous intent left him. 

He turned to face her, but her body went limp, and she collapsed into his arms.