You Can Run But You Can't Hide

Chapter 2 Doing Anything To Keep My Freedom

Otto's POV

My brain is completely filled with so many different thoughts and questions and the common factor among all of those is they consist of her.

My mind just reels over the thoughts of our memorable encounter.

It's not meant as anything offensive at all but I have only met a couple men who have been able to keep up with me in jujitsu, let alone a drastically smaller than me woman giving me a run for my money.

The speed and intricacies she displayed was a type of beauty that most won't understand. But fighting for me is a beautiful dance where placement is key and she doesn't lose her placements willingly..I can tell you that much. I bet she is a wonderful dancer too.

It was almost intoxicating how she was able to keep up with me punch after punch blocking almost everything I could have thrown at her.

My mind replays the moments we had together and I think to myself over the conversations we had.. She said to tell HIM she won't go without a fight.

I wonder who HIM is..

It would take someone extremely skilled to take her on and make her go to where ever it is that she obviously doesn't want to go to.

I have no doubt she would fight just as hard as today if not harder if she had to.

She is really intimidating in her own way but you wouldn't think it looking at her initially. But she could get away with a lot because of looking so unintimidating to the enemy if they didn't realize how much of a weapon her body really is.

I wonder where she thought she would get taken to by me? She obviously already knows where someone wants to take her but she doesn't want to go. Hmm.. even more curious than before.

I have so many questions playing through my head that I wished I had the answers to. I try to take my mind off of her as I watch TV. But I'm not retaining any information that's hitting me from the TV set because I keep finding my mind drifting right back to her.

Man, those gorgeous colored eyes, her intense gaze pierced my soul and now I can't get the sight of those eyes out of my head. They were so hypnotizing, stunning me instantly under her colorful gaze. If I wouldn't have seen them so close up I would have said they were fake by how bright and illuminating they were. She is in her own category when it comes to beauty. She has a different kind of beauty it's mysterious and alluring.

I don't understand why she would ever want to cover up her beautiful features that make her stick out just different from the rest. Why did she want that contact? She almost panicked at the idea of people seeing her like that..

This makes me question..does she not like her eyes or something?

If that's the case then I would tell her everyday how stunning and captivating her colored eyes are just to keep her from putting those contacts back in.

My mind just keeps replaying over every little detail I saw in such close proximity as we both pinned each other in our alleyway dance.

Her slightly skinny oval shaped face, with higher cheek bones and almost chubby cheeks. When she blushed and looked away smiling I saw that adorable single dimple on her right cheek. That captivating bright smile with those plump light burgundy lips popped out even more with her porcelain skintone.

Her eyes had such and intensity as she danced.. or fought with me, however you want to see it. The intensity she radiated absolutely mesmerized me as I remember staring into that blue and green eyes. Her dark eyelashes were so long fanning out around those colors making them pop out more with the help of her glasses framing her eyes.

Her dark eyelashes match her dark hair perfectly. Her hair suprisingly flowed so effortlessly around her body as she spun kicking me with such force into the wall to pin me.

So amazing and so memorable.

What I woman..

Katherine's POV

My heart races as my mind reels over everything that just happened. How did this even happen? I don't completely understand honestly.

I was at the grocery store shopping and singing as I always do, when I felt a presence behind me I turn to see this handsome tall man smiling at me through the thick dark beard..I of course I smile back.

I know he is a stranger but I don't feel uncomfortable with his close proximity it's as if my body doesn't find him as a threat when I normally get uncomfortable with anyone getting too close to me without my concent.

Then I see him in the next isle behind me and the next. I kept watching him in my peripherals just in case. He doesn't get too close but it looks like he is trying to follow me.. I didn't see him while I was checking out at all and I kept and eye out to try to make sure.

But when I left the store I saw him leave the store behind me and I knew for sure THEN he was following me.

I know all too well that when someone is following me, that it means trouble for me. But I have been preparing for these types of situations for years now.

I go to the alleyway quickly hiding my grocery bags and myself waiting for the perfect time to jump out and suprise attack.

I see him looking around not even noticing me yet as he slowly walks past me, I take this as my opportunity to jump out and hit him with my fists of fury.

I hit his chest first from the side gaining his attention as he turns to me. I throw move after move at him and he blocked almost every single one.

I thought for sure he was one of their men especially with his fighting techniques since not many people can keep up with me in jujitsu, which is something I have always prided myself on..

We danced almost effortlessly back and forth around the alleyway perfectly in sync with each others moves as if we had been practicing these moves for a while together. You never would have guessed we had just met and somehow matched up perfectly in our techniques.

I finally get tired of his antics and throw him a curve ball I hope he doesn't see coming and he successfully does not. So I pin him to the wall but the confusion on his face with my declaration of telling him I'm not leaving without a fight, confused me even more than it did him.

He didn't know what I was talking about or was at least a good liar if he did. Then when he saw my different colored eyes which shocked him and acted as if he had never heard or seen of such a thing. I knew he couldn't be with them because I'm sure that's the number one thing they told them to look for when they were searching for me, is a girl with different colored eyes.

I was almost relieved by the fact that he wasn't one of the guys after me. I don't know where it came from but I felt almost calm and comfortable in his close proximity. I don't know if it was his manly musk, the way he fought and danced with me around the alleyway or the way he looked at me like I have never been stared at before. The way he stared at me with curiosity and adoration made my breathe hitch in my throat instantly.

It took my breath away as he stared at me like that because I have never been stared at like that in my entire life. Especially when people have seen my real eye colors. He even complimented my eyes which caught me off guard even more than before, because no one has ever done that and it seemed like his compliment was genuine... intriguingly enough.

I have been made fun of for my different eye colors for as long as I can remember. I was always considered the freak at my school until I got older and developed more into my beautiful features. I started to become what my father called a 'rare beauty'.

I at first thought it would be a good thing to be a rare beauty and to be different from the rest of the people around me.

That was until I had to run and hide...It's so hard to hide when you stick out like a sore thumb.

So my eyes had to be the first thing to cover up if I wanted to stay hidden longer.

Luckily I have been able to stay hidden and stay a couple steps ahead of the guys that are after me because I have been able to spot his guys a mile away.

It's been 4 almost 5 years of running and hiding. This guy today was the first guy to make me feel like my freedom has come to an end.

I have been in this town for a little bit over 6 months now because of my last encounter with their men almost getting caught, but luckily slipping through their fingers and onto the next small town to hide for a little longer.

I never last too long in any place because they have never stopped searching for me since the day I left, so I will never stop hiding or fighting, until the day I die.

That's why I never make friends and definitely never date. I don't want to get attached and get hurt or people get hurt because of helping me out either. Which has happened before.

When I first ran away. I of course went to a place where I felt safe and comfortable which was a friend's house understandably. My friends and their families got killed for hiding me and helping me escape.

Then I hid with another friend but to avoid being hurt they stabbed me in the back and tried to give me up to them.

I heard them talking about their plans on the phone with them.. so I ran before they had the chance to trap me. If anyone knew the mafia boss was who really wanted me I know I wouldn't be safe with anyone.

I bet anyone would give me up in a second to save their asses. Which is sadly understandable, but because of this fact I just don't trust anyone anymore.

I will stay away from everyone the rest of my life to ensure that I get to stay with my freedom intact.

The reason why I shouldn't be free right now is because my father owed a very big mafia boss lots of money, apparently from all of his gambling. It was either he payed the debt with money or his life and I guess my father had other plans.

So when the mafia boss showed up for his payment.. my father.. The guy that has beat me most of my life and really not given a s**t about me.. offered me as payment to the mafia boss.

My father even said to him that I was a virgin and he could have me and use me for whatever he needed, as if I was some sort of property of his.. just because I lived under his roof. The disgusting lustful look on that old mafia man's face when he checked my body out from across the room. He licks his lips sending a straight shiver of disgust down my spine.

He smiles a mischievous evil grin in my direction and nodded at my father agreeing to the deal.

I can't believe this happened, I was only 17 and still under my father's house hold and care..supposedly.. even though he didn't do anything for me because of being a gambling, abusive drunk.

He said I had to do this because I owed him.. owed him for What? The nonexistent food and love he gave me over the years? I don't think so.

When they made the deal signing the papers over me.. I literally ran.

I got up so quickly sliding past the guards since I know my way around the apartment building better than anyone else here..even though this mafia boss supposedly owns this building.

I make it to my room in no time at all grabbing my only backpack and packing the clothes, money and the much needed essentials for my trip.

I turn around to leave when I see 2 mafia guards at my door.. I scan looking around the room, trying to figure out what to do before it's too late. I get the only option of my window in my head.

So I run to my window opening it and jumping out quickly. I tuck and roll so I don't hit the ground too hard. Just going with the flow of the fall.

I learned that tip from my skateboarder friends from high school.. you know, before when I did have friends, I at least learned to fall, because look at how it's helping me now. Thanks old friends..

I get up as quickly as possible running to my motorcycle. I jump on it, turning it on with so much haste and taking off on my bike into the night.

I have been running and hiding ever since and I won't let anything or anyone change that.

This is not my debt so I won't pay it, especially to help my dad out. He obviously wouldn't do the same for me. So I just run and hide coveting the only thing I have left which is my freedom.

I don't even care if I end up dying running from these guys as long as I never have to be their slave and die without my freedom intact.

That's the reason why I have completely dedicated myself to jujitsu.. I'm going to give anyone who wants to take my freedom away, the fight of their life, you better believe it.

I'm driving faster than I probably should be down the streets weaving back and forth through traffic just in case. You can never be too careful when it comes to running and hiding. I feel like I'm pretty good at hiding now and being able to see the signs of danger before they even hit.

I have had to take certain precautions when running away like changing my ID and social security card along with my license plate and my hair.

My hair use to be short.. above my shoulders a pixie cut is what they called it and I completely grew it out.. went back to my natural hair color instead of all the colors I normally put into it..along with changing my eye color.. But there is one thing that remains the same that can't get myself to change no matter how many times I have thought about it. I can't change my first name Katherine.

My mother was the one to pick out my name for me and she made me love it so much just because she gave it to me. She use to call me her KitKat as we hung out everyday.. this was before my father became a drunk, abusive gambler.

She always called me her little Kit Kat and it's been so long since I saw her last that, that's the last memory I have of her besides the crash that killed her when I was 6.

My mother and I were driving home when a car hit us from the side at full speed so we flew, flipped and rolled so many times across the road and down this huge hill, We tumbled for what seemed like forever until we came to a complete stop. What's shocking is that everyone said we both should have been dead.. but by some 'miracle' I survived.

My father never viewed it as a miracle. He has dispised me since the day I came home without my mother. I think he wishes she came home instead of me and I know this to be true if we are being honest actually.. because he has told me this plenty of times before.

The love of his life didn't survive which is heart breaking in it's self, but you would think he would be happy about his daughter surviving.. but all he does is glare at me and talk about how much I look like her especially the older I got. But he never said that comment as a good thing. He would say it when he was good and drunk with so much spiteful anger in his voice as if I didn't deserve to look like my mom.. He acts like I killed her even though we both know it wasn't my fault.

He says I look exactly like her except for my eyes of course since this is a rare condition. But I think the fact that I look like her makes him hate me even more because I'm a reminder of what he doesn't have in his life anymore.

When I started to get older and acting like my mom just as much as I looked like her is when the beating really started.

Because before that he would only hit me every now and then when I did something wrong here and there. As I got older, the more he drank the more abusive he got especially when he started the gambling and losing everything he barely had.

I could never do anything good enough in his eyes no matter what it was, or how I did it he never liked it. I was doomed to fail from the beginning.

So getting beat started to become an everyday thing along with his drinking and gambling. They all came hand in hand when it happened.

It was just implied at this point because we couldn't have one without the other. Hence why I had to learn how to defend myself once I left that hell hole.

My father stopped going to work the more he drank and gambled.. hence where the long long list of debt came from for him to pay off.

He had sold anything and everything of value in our apartment long ago, so he had nothing to pay off his debt..except for me of course.

I never even thought that was an option when he asked me to come with him to talk to this mafia boss.

I was suspicious of my father of course, but I never thought he would try to sell me and let alone that the guy would accept the offer. I thought he was just trying to get pity showing he had someone to take care of or something along those lines.

My mouth dropped in horror as the realization hit that my father just sold me to this awfully disgusting looking old man who won't stop staring at me with so much lust in his eyes.

I think that's what really sealed the deal with this guy is when my dad told him how I'm still a virgin and he nodded agreeing to the offer right after.. disgusting.

If that doesnt make you NEVER want to have s*x then I don't know what would. s*x does not sound like a good plan when it involves anyone that looks like THAT at me and makes me feel THAT disgusting just by one look.

One of the last things I remember is looking up at my dad as he smiled a devilishly satisfied looking smug smirk in my direction.

That smirk and look still haunts my dreams to this day. I have nightmares almost every night of his and that mafia bosses faces as they stared at me like prey.

They will be eternally engraved in my brain no matter what I try to do to get rid of them. That look on my father's face from across the room was the scariest look he had ever given me and that says a lot with all the awful situations he put me through.

That's when the realization really hit me like a brick wall waking me up, as I jumped up so quickly running to my room collecting what things I could carry with me as I made my escape to keep the only thing I have left.. my freedom.