(Renata Pellegrini)
I turn my face forward again and stare at the tall man, he alternates his gaze between me and the men in black, my heart hammers hard in my chest, I'm too young to die like this, in the middle of a gunfight.
I breathe a relieved breath when the guy puts the gun down, stowing it back in his waistband.
“Go away, Julio, please.” Amanda requested.
“I'm not leaving here without my money you little bitch.” He shouts to Amanda who cringes.
“How much is it?” I ask, getting the guy's attention.
“You ask me, is Madam going to pay the debt on this one, by any chance?” He asks mockingly, making me angry.
“How much?” I insist.
“Nine thousand dollars.” He answers seriously.
After I became the secretary and personal assistant to the CEO of the company, my salary more than quintupled, I still have three months to go working there, but from my second salary, I didn't have to spend a cent, so I have this amount in my account. How nice it is to receive money in dollars. If I had to convert this amount, receiving a secretary's salary in Brazil, I would despair.
“Give me your account number, I will make the transfer.” I say, grabbing my cell phone from my purse.
“Renata, you don't have to do that, I don't want you to get involved in my problems…”
“Either I get the money, or you die, and then what?” He asks Amanda threateningly, making her cry, and it breaks my heart.
“The bill!” I speak.
He passes me the number and I make the transfer.
“Tell your father never to show up there again, or things might not end so well next time, girl.” The guy speaks before leaving my friend's house, leaving only the strange men in black.
“Who are you?” I question as the thug disappears from my field of vision.
“Your security guards.” One of them answers.
“Mine?” I ask, my eyes wide open. “Since when are you following me?”
“Since the attempted kidnapping, ma'am.” Another answer.
"But that's almost three months old!" - I think in amazement, how come I never noticed them before?
“Filippo, who hired them to follow me?” I ask, but I already know the answer, and yet, at that moment, I am both grateful and angry with him.
“We were part of his security, he just relocated someone else in his place.”
“Why have I never seen them?”
“We are paid to be discreet. Now, continue to have a quiet evening, ma'am.” He speaks nodding his head, soon everyone turns away walking away.
“You too.” I whisper trying to see where they are going, but they turn a corner and disappear from my field of vision.
“Renata…” I hear Amanda's weak, almost whispered voice calling me, I look in her direction and she closes her eyes, I run to her and support her before she falls to the floor.
“I'm going to call a samu.” I speak dialing the number, to my unhappiness, they don't accept the call, because they analyzed Amanda's case and decided that it is not an emergency but an urgency. What the hell! - Calm down, girlfriend, I'll fix it. - I try to sound calm, Amanda is unconscious in my arms.
Carefully I leave her lying on the ground and go to the middle of the track, I can't control the tears. I am very afraid of losing my best friend, even if the hospital doesn't see her case as an emergency, I am afraid.
“Men in black!” I shout. “Please help me! Help!” I keep screaming, my heart is beating hard in my chest, I don't have time to wait for an Uber and I'm not even going to find one, nobody wants to go into this neighborhood.
After almost two minutes of screaming, the men appear behind me, startling me. I put my hands on my chest trying to calm my breathing.
“But you came in from the back street.” I speak trying to understand why you came from another street.
“What's the problem, ma'am?”
“I need you to take my friend to the hospital, she has passed out, I think her nose is broken and her arm is dislocated, she already has one of her legs broken, help me please!” I say, without being able to hold back the tears.
The men look at each other, one of them goes back to the back of the street and in less than a minute he returns with a black car, he parks the car in front of the gate. We all get in and carefully lay Amanda down on the back seat, I get in as well and lay her head on my lap.
Two men get in the car and the other three stay inside Amanda's residence, the driver starts the car, it takes about twenty minutes until we arrive at the hospital, one of the men carries Amanda on his lap and goes inside, soon the nurses come to meet us and take Amanda away.
I went up to the counter, gave only her first name, I didn't have any documents, so I couldn't give any more information for her file, I gave my data, and I was taken as her escort.
“Where are they going?” I ask, watching them leave the hospital.
“Back to our post, ma'am.” One of them answers and then both of them leave, leaving me alone in here.
Walking back and forth, I wonder if Filippo is home already. As if he is reading my thoughts, my cell phone starts ringing, it is he who is calling me.
“Where are you?” He inquires on the other end of the line.
“At the hospital.” I answer. “Amanda has fainted, she is very hurt.” I will explain. “Are you home already?” I ask.
“I am on my way.” He ends the call.
After about thirty minutes, my heart lightens as I see Filippo entering the hospital. He comes towards me and I throw myself into his arms, a new session of tears starts coming out of my eyes, wetting his suit. Filippo strokes my back, trying to comfort me.
“Have they heard anything yet?” He asks as I calm down.
“Not yet.” I answer without letting go of him, in his arms I feel calm and safe, I don't want to let go, not now.
Twenty minutes later:
“Mss. Pellegrini?” I hear my name called, look in the direction of the voice and see a doctor.
“Over here!” I answer, getting her attention.
She comes to meet me.
“How is she?” I ask in nervous.
“She is now coming, she won't have to wear a sling on her arm, when we went to put her dislocated arm in place, she woke up and started screaming, so we had to sedate her, so we were also able to put her dislocated nose in place and now she can breathe without difficulty.”
“Thank you so much, Doctor!” I'm so relieved, the air now seems to have become lighter.
“- No problem, here, take it.” She handed me two sheets of paper. “Go to the counter to make the payment. The other sheet is the medication she needs to take.” The doctor explains and turns back to the inside of the hospital.
I feel my heart skip about thirty beats when I see the bill, five thousand dollars, I don't have that amount, I used almost my entire salary paying that man and now I only have three hundred dollars. Hospitals here in the US are too expensive, what do I do?