The Perfect Machine: Kingdom Of Glass (GxG

19. Shoot her!

We're heading up to the front door, and she opens it slowly to have a peek at the empty corridor.

"Keep your head down," She whispers, and I nod in agreement at her. Harlow swings the door open and we're moving in the other direction of the elevator.

"Stop!" I hear a man yell and I turn to look behind me. Men in black armor and helmets with firearms in their hands are chasing after us. But Harlow doesn't stop; we're both racing for the entrance, and Harlow pulls us through it.

"Come on," She says as we sprint down the spiral of stairs, but with every step we take, I'm beginning to lose my breath.

"I can't," I say, reaching out for air.

"They're here!" Yells someone farther down the stairs and I see Harlow looking around to find a solution to the dilemma we're in. Right now, we're stuck in the center.

"Harlow," I say, concerned when I see them getting closer to the bottom. She clenches her teeth and breathes heavily.

"What are you doing?" I shout as she climbs over the railing.

"I will come back," She vows, then she lets herself down. I watch her slip down a few meters before she grabs the railing. Then she takes a man and pulls him over. I step back, not wanting to see, but that doesn't mean I can't hear the screams.

The surge of fear strikes me as my hands trembles and my legs shake under me. I know what she is, but it still scares me. Right above my head, I hear footsteps that make me snap out of it. My legs respond before I even know it; I start running down the stairs to meet Harlow.

She may be scary, but she's the only protection I've got. I collapse on the stairs as I miss a step.

"Stop!" A woman aims her gun at me and I freeze in my place as I feel my heart pounding in my ears. Another soldier takes me by the arm and pushes me to his side. There are five other men behind the woman.

"I have Hernandez," Says the woman on the radio.

"Affirmative and Gray?" Asks a man.

"It's a work in progress," The woman says, staring down the steps.

"Get her!" Shouts the guy on the radio.

"Yes, sir," She sighs, glaring at the men behind her.

"Go," She commands them and I'm struggling to get myself free from the man's grasp on me, but I can't.

"Harlow!" I screamed in fear, and the man laid his hand over my mouth.

"Let's go," The woman says, and the man is carrying me back up the steps beside them. I keep fighting, but I don't have a chance.

"Get in," She said, opening the door to the corridor. We pass doors after the doors as we strive to reach the elevator, but then we hear something split further behind us. It was Harlow who broke the door down.

"Shoot her!" Said the lady, pressing the button quickly on the lift. The guy lets me go and get his weapon shot and shoot for it.

"No!" I scream as he unleashes his firearm, the slug hits Harlow right in the shoulder, but it ricochets right out of her.

"We should have taken the electrical ones, not the rubber bullets," The man says in frustration while watching the lady.

"I didn't give the order," She says. He keeps firing at her, but every bullet hits her as if it were a feather.

"Who thought this was a good idea?" He yells as the firearm runs out of bullets. He drops his weapon on the floor as he races for Harlow. The door behind me is opening and I'm forced into the elevator.

The guy throws the first punch, but it only makes it easier for Harlow to grab him by the arm. She is frowning at him until she pushes him to the side, slamming his head in the wall. He remains on the ground, motionless as Harlow rushes forward to the elevator and I watch the door shut right in front of her face. I recognize the look in her eyes. That was not Harlow.

"Sir, I've got Hernandez in the elevator. I need backup. The rubber bullets don't work on Gray," She says on the radio, out of breath.

"Backup is on the way," He replies.

"Do you know how we can stop her?" She asks, and I dismiss her. As badly as she needs to be stopped right now, I don't know how to do that, nor do I want to do it.

The lift is coming to an end as the woman takes a step out. Harlow pulls her away from the ground. I swallow deeply as I head back to the elevator as I try to convince myself over and over again that it's no longer Harlow.

Harlow is holding onto the shirt on the woman, looking at her with narrowed eyes.

"Let me go!" The lady screams, but it only serves to activate something in Harlow. I shut my eyes because I know what's going to happen. I listen to the woman screaming in agony and her bones breaking. I fall down the wall because I can no longer feel my muscles. Tears slide down my cheeks.

When the cries are silenced, I open my eyes even though I don't want to. Harlow stands there studying the woman's body in front of her. Maybe she's coming back to herself again.

"H-Harlow?" I say her name, and she turns to me, but I know her face very well. She came to me in a hurry, as though she had only one thing in her mind, to rip me from limb to limb.

"Don't," I whispered, begging her not to hurt me. She reaches the lift, but the sound of gun fire prevented her from getting to me.

"Don't move!" A deep voice echoed through the lobby. Harlow frowns as she slowly turns to face the man.

"Gray, you're under arrest!" He yells, lifting his weapon toward her. Harlow begins to move towards the man and he fires his gun, hitting her in the chest. I'm looking at a man in surprise as he pulls the trigger again on his weapon.

I watch Harlow's body go through a shock, but it doesn't appear to affect her too much when she pulls it off. The guy continues shooting at her in terror as he moves back to the exit. Harlow continues pulling the bullets out of her, but she seems to be dealing a little with the pain as she reaches out for the man.

She grabs him firmly by the throat. He tries to get in the air to fight her grasp, but he doesn't stand a chance. I watch his face turn red and then his legs stop moving. Finally, his eyes close.

Harlow lets his body sink to the ground. She's standing there in silence, as I'm sitting here in absolute chaos. My emotions are tossed in every direction and I can't find a safe or steady ground to land.

She turns to face me after a long time. Her expression says it all: uncertainty, dread, and terror for the first time. She's taking a step towards me, but I'm lifting my hands, which makes her pause in place.

Harlow remains on her ground, looking down as she struggles with herself. She knows that I'm terrified of her, but the pain on her face is the true Harlow, and I need to remember that it's not her.

It's not her fault.

I make my way to her slowly, still uncertain, but at this very moment, I realize she's frightened of herself. She's broken and shattered.

"I'm sorry," She says without being able to look me in the eye. I lay my hand on her cheek to make her watch me.

"It's not your fault," I say, but my words are worthless.

"I can't protect you from me," She says as she narrows her eyes.

"Hey," I put both my hands on her face, keeping her gaze on me.

"We just need to get those pills, and you're going to be all right," I smile at her, and she nods lightly, but her black eyes are still full of sorrow.

"We're going to end this," I assure her.