PAMPERED

374 Shhh!

“Hello, Second Brother. Is he… is he alive?”

Just as that question left her mouth, the man beneath Hugo reached up and grabbed Hugo’s collar, launching a powerful headbutt. Penny winced at the sound of their skulls crashing together. The man pushed Hugo off and then crawled away.

“Well…” Penny let out an awkward chuckle. “I guess he’s alive.”

“Ugh…” Hugo touched his forehead in pain, but the pain wasn’t enough to stop him. He quickly leaped to grab the man again, determined to finish the job.

Meanwhile, Zoren kept his eyes on the two men wrestling and fighting. “Penny, what am I looking at?” he asked, turning his gaze back to Penny.

“Nothing she smiled at him. “It’s nothing. We are seeing nothing.

“Oh.” He nodded. “I’m blind. How can I see anything?” Content (C) Nôv/elDra/ma.Org.

“Hehe.” Penny chuckled and peeked at her brother. She flinched a little as Hugo’s fist kept hitting the man’s face to the point she started feeling sorry for the other guy. “Second Brother, I think… I think that’s enough.

But her voice was simply carried away by the wind.

“We should go,” she whispered, looking down at Zoren again. “Once my Second Brother is finished with him, you’re next.

“Oh.” Zoren nodded. “Let’s go.”

Just as they agreed and were about to get up, the sound of a speeding car reached her sharp ears. Penny quickly grabbed Zoren’s shoulders and pinned him down, taking him by surprise. She lowered his head to his chest before yelling.

“Second Brother!”

When Hugo turned his head and saw his sister almost on top of a man, his eyes blazed. “You’re

next.”

‘Shit!‘ she cursed in her heart, but this wasn’t the time. “Hide!”

“Huh?”

“Hide!”

Hugo tilted his head to the side. “Why?”

“A car is coming!”

Hugo blinked indifferently. “So?”

Even if there was an oncoming car, it wasn’t likely to stop If they saw two men fighting. Who would want to get between two men fighting at this time of night?

“It’s First Brother!” she yelled, and just like that, Hugo landed another punch on the man and

374 Shhh!

ducked.

VROOOM!

They all held their breath for reasons unknown, listening to the car drive past the street where they were hiding. Just from the sound alone, Penny, Zoren, and Hugo knew that the car was driving so fast it was impossible for the driver to see them.

Atlas seemed like he was in a race, after all..

However…

Screech! T

Their breaths hitched upon hearing the tires screech and the pungent smell of burnt rubber filling their nostrils.

“Why did he stop?” Hugo looked at Penny, wide–eyed. “Did he see you?”

“Can’t you see me?” she shot back sarcastically, knowing she was almost burying herself in Zoren’s body. She wouldn’t be surprised if she ended up inside him at this point.

Her remark, however, only revived Hugo’s primal instincts as he gazed at his sister’s position. Although the man beneath her didn’t seem to be taking advantage of her and it looked like Penny was the one violating Zoren’s personal space–it still didn’t make sense to Hugo.

Why did his sister have to do the pinning?

Does he not like Penny?

SCREEECH!

Hugo’s thoughts were interrupted by the sound of screeching tires again and the engine noise growing closer. Once more, they held their breath, eyes wide, as the car suddenly stopped right in front of the spot where they were hiding.

“God damn it… Penny cursed under her breath, making Zoren chuckle. “Shhh!”

She covered his mouth and lowered her head, almost burying her face in his chest. As she did so, she raised an eyebrow at the sound of his heartbeat.

‘His heart is beating so fast,‘ she thought, her attention completely diverted to counting his heartbeats per second. Deep lines appeared between her brows as she realized his heart was beating abnormally. Gazing up at him, a look of worry brimmed in her eyes.

Zoren looked down at her, sensing her change in mood. “Everything okay?” he whispered, placing his hand on her back to reassure her. Her heart almost leaped at his soft, casual touch on her lower back, but her mind knew It wasn’t the time for butterflies and rainbows.

“Your heart,” she whispered, pressing a finger to his neck. “Are you okay?”

“Ah. Yes, I am.”

“Hmm?”

He smiled, feeling her gaze on him. He lifted his head slightly and whispered in her ear almost

flirtatiously

374 Shhh!

“Your position,” he said. “You’re too close. It makes my heart flutter.”

Slowly, the corners of his lips lifted as he pulled his head back from her. If only he could see her clearly in the dark, he would have known how flustered she was.

Now, it was her heart that was thumping like crazy!

“Ah…” she cleared her throat, lowering her head like a robot. “Is that so?”

He chuckled, turning his eyes toward the bush. Moments ago, he had heard the car stop and the door open. But until now, no one had come closer. When he heard the car door close again, he looked back at Penny.

“He’s leaving,” he whispered, tapping her back lightly. “Are we still leaving?”

Penny pecked up at him, her lips pressed into a thin line. She tilted her head a bit to check on Hugo.

“Yes,” she whispered to him as she looked back at Zoren. “We still have another brother to run. away from. I’m going to jump up, and you get up quickly, okay? We’ll run as fast as we can.”

Zoren nodded in understanding.

With that, Penny and Zoren stared at each other before she yelled, “Now!”

And as planned, she jumped away from him while Zoren mustered every ounce of energy he had left to get up as quickly as possible. Once they were back on their feet, they looked at Hugo.

“Second Brother, you’re doing great!” she said, giving him a thumbs up, only to see that the other man was reaching for something. “Second Brother, he’s still alive!”

When her shouts reached Hugo’s ears, he turned to face his opponent. The other man had already grabbed a rock and smashed it at Hugo. Hugo blocked it with his arms, but as he did, the man managed to kick him in the chest.

“Shit!” Hugo hissed, turning his head just in time to catch a glimpse of Penny, Zoren, Chunchun, and that big panther running away. “Pen-”

He stopped himself as he turned his head back to his opponent, who was also running away in another direction. Grinding his teeth, Hugo pulled himself up and reluctantly went after his opponent, telling himself he would deal with Penny later.

And that was how Penny and Zoren escaped Hugo. 2