Duplus

Chapter 35

——Amaani's POV——

Okay, these attackers had a lot of free time on their hands. The more we tried to get out of trouble, the more they tried to get involved with us. Wasn't it enough to deal with grumpy, bipolar Broad shoulders already that they had to strike again?

Though my heart was racing at dangerous speeds, I felt like giving them a piece of my mind.

Jaber held me firmly which made it hard for me to concentrate on the fact that we could get killed if we made a single wrong move. The closeness between us and the slight brushing of my back against his chest made me want to break free as soon as possible. But knowing the circumstances, I knew it was foolish to make such a move.

The sound of movement above us, in the deep trees, shook me out of paranoia that Broad shoulders was standing so close to me. To the extent that I could hear his heart beat fast.

I muttered a silent prayer under my breath, wishing for our safety and also to escape the awkward moment. It wouldn't be the first time Allah saved us by a hair's length and that strengthened my faith in Him.

Swoosh

Swoosh

My breath got stuck in my throat and I looked up at Jaber whose chin was just above my head. "We should move," I whispered to him. He shifted his eyes to me and the anger in them told me I shouldn't have spoken. He shook his head slightly, bringing a finger to his lips silently telling me to shush.

Great, I couldn't speak now.

I looked around, finding more missed arrows. It made one thing clear, there was one man behind this and he was hiding in the trees.

Before I could make up a plan in my head, Jaber decided to move behind me. He let go of me and gently pushed me behind him after which I found myself exhaling as if I hadn't the past few minutes he held me so close.

His face told me he had decided to go out there. I saw him picking up a thick bough with a spiky tip and holding it like a spear. He glanced back at me and gestured for me not to move.

I nodded assuringly after which he walked a few steps away. His eyes were fixated above on one of the trees as if he had found what he was looking for. No matter what it was, I was losing my mind to my fear.

I shut my eyes again and repeated Bismillah again and again in my head, holding my hands close to my chest.

Jaber got ready to act, bringing out his hand around the firm bough and finally throwing it straight to the sky covered by the long tree branches and leaves. A loud thud on the ground in between the bushes caught our attention. A man's cry of pain made my ears perk up.

"You got 'em!" I whisper-yelled and even Jaber was too glad to stop me from talking again.

"I'll check it. You stay here." He ordered. I frowned at him. "I can take care of myself this much at least. Let me come." the protest made me receive another death glare. "Do you want to get hurt, Ama—Ms. Sohail?" he seemed a little startled by his accidental slip of words. He quickly turned around and continued to move further.

I decided to oblige and stood in my place mainly because I was a bit distracted by him almost calling me Amaani. It made me realize that he never called me by my first name unless he was in a worrisome and rushy situation.