It was late at night. Heitor and Marina were supposed to sleep at my apartment, but they had gone out to buy pizza. I was so tired, Guimarães didn't show up, which raised more questions about whether I did the right thing. My body was so tired, and my eyes seemed to grow heavier with each passing moment. I lay down on the bed and turned off the light, knowing that Mari could wake me up when she arrived.
I started to doze off when I felt two large, undoubtedly male hands tightening around my neck. I tried to scream, but no sound came out. I couldn't see the face in the dark, but judging by the height, I had a slight guess. "Damn it." My hand reached for my alarm clock on the bedside table. I held it as firmly as I could and hit the intruder on the head. He didn't even flinch, and his hands seemed to tighten even more. I think being strangled to death will enter the top three of experiences I don't want to repeat.
I felt my vision darken completely and began to regret having treated my neighbor from 517 with rudeness. He was the closest one to rescue me at this moment.
The intruder fell to the side the next moment, and I got up coughing and trying to understand what had just happened. A hand pulled me out of bed, and I only recognized Heitor when the light from the hallway illuminated his face. Marina was behind him holding a bottle.
"Run." Heitor shouted to Marina as he pulled me out of the room.
My feet wouldn't obey me, and I kept stumbling over an invisible object. If it weren't for Heitor, I would have fallen to the ground. We only stopped when we got into the elevator. Marina pressed the garage button.
"It was Guimarães, I'm sure of it." I said coughing, sitting on the elevator floor trying to catch my breath.
"Shit." Marina cursed.
The elevator reached the garage, and Marina checked if there was anyone before we left. We went straight to her car, and I breathed a sigh of relief when we left the building. For the first time, I thanked Marina for being a gossip and involving Heitor in this story.
"If we can't trust the police, who can we trust?" Heitor asked, as scared as we were.
I took my cell phone out of my pocket and looked at Cassandra's message again.
"I'll go." I thought out loud.
"Go where?" Marina asked me, diverting her attention from the traffic.
"I'm going after Pierre."
"Are you crazy, woman?" Heitor shook his head incredulously.
"It's no use, Heitor. When Elizabeth sets her mind to something, it's over." The car fell silent for a minute. She looked at me confidently. "I'm going with you."
"No, I won't put you at risk, Marina." I quickly refused.
"I'm going with you guys." Heitor added.
I wanted to accept it because I was so scared, but if something happened to them because I made the wrong choice...
"There's no point in rejecting it, we're going." Marina cut off my thoughts.
---
The next morning, Marina returned to my apartment with Heitor, while I waited in her apartment. I was too scared to go back there. I made a list of everything I would need, including the documents.
Marina's doorbell rang, I looked through the peephole, and it was her father. I opened the door with trembling hands. Ferraço was wearing the police uniform and looking at me as if he knew everything.
"Where's Marina?"
"She went to my place to get some things."
Ferraço furrowed his brow and stepped closer to me. His breath smelled of coffee.
"What are you up to?"
"Nothing." I lied.
He continued to stare at me, and I started to wonder if he was trustworthy, and I wished I could tell him everything. I felt my throat closing up, and it was as if Guimarães was strangling me again.
"Dad?" Marina called from behind him.
Ferraço turned around and caught sight of Heitor.
"Now I understand everything." Ferraço said threateningly to Marina. "So that's why the wedding with Deivid hasn't happened yet, Marina?"
"There's nothing..."
"I can't believe it." He shouted, ignoring Marina's attempts to explain herself. "You always bring me disgrace."
Marina held her father's gaze, her expression a mixture of anger and sadness.
"Stop jumping to conclusions, you don't know anything." Marina retorted.
"I'll give you a month, Marina. One month. If you don't get married, forget that I'm your father, forget that you have a family."
Marina opened the door to the apartment without even looking at Ferraço.
"Can you leave my apartment?"
He looked incredulous. His eyes seemed to catch fire, and for a moment, I was afraid he would attack Marina. I approached Marina as a silent sign of support. The atmosphere became tense, the words hanging in the air like a dark cloud.
She seemed so small and fragile.
"I'll go, but whatever mess you're making, don't call me later to clean up your shit." He walked through the door with heavy steps, his presence leaving a trail of tension in the air.
Marina finally collapsed, her back bending under the weight of the fight with her father.