The past week had been going much better. She wasn’t really asking anyone for help like her brother had suggested. Yet, he was always lurking around right behind her, which in a sense was providing the help she needed even if she refused to ask for it. With him always checking on her and giving her a boost, she went on about her daily life. She was being more of a people person and the shop owners paying their taxes was a little easier to come by. Perhaps brute force wasn’t always the best option, she chuckled at the thought.

She was starting to question how her brother always seemed to know where she was. Could it be that her boss was having him keep tabs on her? Was this being done out of their love of her or out of their concern she wasn’t fit to do her job anymore? Shaking her head, she refused to think bad thoughts, especially of her brother. He had always been her rock and she used to be his, at least up until his accident. She couldn’t forgive herself for that day...

As soon as she had received a tip that the drop was going to be a bust, she was driving as fast as she could to try and prevent it. The building her brother had been at was abandoned and with hints that it was haunted, not many cared to go near it except maybe the few oddballs that thrived on the paranormal. This made the building a good spot for drops. Yet, this one was going to go very south and very fast. The people her brother was meeting wouldn’t take kindly to cops showing up, they would shoot her brother instantly and then run without question.

She had parked her car about a block away and quietly walked to the building. She could hear voices and could tell they were in the process of looking over everything. The cops hadn’t arrived yet and Clarity breathed a small sigh of relief. Now she just had to get her brother out of there unharmed without them getting touchy or suspecting something. Should she just walk straight in and act like she was expected by her brother? Should she try to get his attention and have him excuse himself for a moment? What was the best course of action?

She had inched close enough to see everyone and that was when she heard the soft footsteps of others. “Shit…” they were here. The cops had made it, but no one knew yet. Clarity didn’t know what to do or how to get her brother out. She was hunched over panicking trying to think of something fast when she heard the words, “FREEZE!”.

Shots immediately started firing, no crooked gangster was going to freeze, she never understood why that was even attempted. So, she used this opportunity of surprise to try and protect her brother. Clarity stood up and pulled her gun, she made no noise and knew all eyes were on everyone but her. She fired a shot right into the chest of the guy closest to her brother. This then set off a wave of other shots from both sides, but her brother was smart enough to realize where the first shot came from. He looked directly at Clarity and knew. He went to run towards her, but the man she had shot was too quick, he fired directly at her brother.

Screaming, she ran to him without thinking and drug him out of range while most were too busy shooting at each other to notice them. The shot was a good one, she wasn’t sure if it missed his heart or not, but she wasn’t wasting time to find out. She quickly put pressure on the wound and got him to her car. She situated him so that she could help apply pressure while driving and hit the gas as hard as she could. She tore through the streets to the closest hospital. A few there knew who they were and were quick to grab them and take them back to a room.

She stood there helplessly as she watched them work. If only she had gotten there sooner or knew what to do to get him out of there unharmed. If only she was better and smarter.

...Looking back at that day she was unsure how her brother survived that wound. She was blessed that he did, but she still didn’t know how. Yet, ever since that day her brother was the one looking after her and he always seemed just a few steps behind her, if not ahead. She still wonders how he is able to do it.