THE SURTR: SON IN LAW

CHAPTER 06 HER SAVIOUR

The entire office was gripped by a sense of impending danger while these unwelcome visitors settled into their space.

Just then, one of the female employees, Helen, just came down from the first floor. For the last ten minutes, she was arranging some files upstairs, and had no idea that the office had been occupied by gangsters.

She was a little scared, but still tried to reach her desk. However, her steps halted as a hand gripped her wrist, saying;

"Why are you in such a hurry, sweetie? Won't you say hi first?"

The leader teased her, as Helen fixed her gaze on the ground out of fear.

Helen was caught off guard and forced a polite smile while suppressing her discomfort, saying in a pleading voice;

"He- hello… pl- please let me go now-"

In response, the man holding her wrist laughed loudly,

"Of course, I didn't stop you here just to let you go, you know?"

Another gangster walked up and stood close to her, saying,

"Boss! We heard that these office people are so educated and mannered, but look at her! She doesn't even want to welcome her guests…"

"Doesn't matter, she'll learn all our manners after spending some time with me, won't you honey?"

"Oh, it's such a waste that such a pretty girl like you is stuck working here. You could rule over our hearts with your beauty!"

The woman being teased was also one of the employees who had been teasing Ellen and had their wages deducted because of it.

Helen herself had enjoyed seeing him stand there uncomfortably as they all abused him, but right now, when the gangsters were teasing him, she was shaking nervously, almost at the verge of crying.

The male colleagues, who had previously showed off their courage while mocking Ellen, also had visibly ugly expressions while watching Helen be harassed.

But in spite of their disapproval, they still couldn't take any action as they were paralyzed by their own fear, thinking that they might face serious consequences by provoking these gangsters.

All they could do is mutter and whisper in hushed tones,

"Dude, this is really messed up."

"Yeah, poor Helen… if not for that one holding a gun, I would never let them get away with this behavior!"

"Of course, someone needs to take a stand!"

Meanwhile, Sam Catt finally parked his Porsche under the building after dropping Marlene off, as it was time for him to spend his daily thirty minutes in the office before calling it a day.

But as soon as he turned the corner, he immediately spotted the gang members, who were busy with Helen and had not noticed his presence.

With his survival instincts activated, Sam lunged to the side and hid himself behind a large flower pot, while he observed the situation from behind a flowerpot.

Back in the office, Ellen decided to confront the intruders. All the other employees cowered and retreated behind their desks as he stepped forward, saying,

"You all have trashed this place enough, now it will be better for you to leave."

"Or what, pretty boy? Are you threatening us, or at least trying to?"

One of the gangsters mocked.

Ellen calmly replied,

"You can take it as a threat if you want, but I'm just reminding you that violent collection is prohibited under national laws."

The gangsters, who were used to hearing aggressive and offensive language, dismissed his words. In fact, they assumed that Ellen must be an easy target because of his docile behavior.

The leader sneered,

"This idiot doesn't even realize that he's asking for trouble…"

One of his men said, convinced that a single punch would be enough to intimidate him.

"Then I'll go ahead and show him."

Saying this, the gangster swung his fist, aiming for Ellen's face.

But to the surprise of everyone, Ellen just flexed his jaw, seeming completely unaffected by the punch as if just a breeze had blown past him.

But what was even more unexpected, was that the gangster's face twisted in pain as he grabbed his wrist. His hand was throbbing from the impact as he exchanged confused glances with his friends.

Ellen was just as unaffected by everyone's astonished and impressed looks like this was an everyday matter for him, but just as he was about to say something, their eyes collectively moved towards the door.

It was Sophie who was standing there, completely unaware of the presence of intruders. 

She saw the scene of confrontation and froze in shock, while the gang members also spotted her entrance at the same time.

They quickly rushed towards her to surround her from all sides, declaring, "There she is!"

But Ellen acted faster than them and quickly stood in the doorway, blocking their path.

The gang leader glared at him,

"You! Stand aside, she owes a debt, and it's time to pay up!

Ellen was standing like a barrier between Sophie and the gang members, and on hearing the leader's words, Sophie became visibly distressed.

She said defiantly,

"You have no reason to frame me for a debt I don't owe!"

The gangster threatened her again,

"You can say whatever you want, but it won't come true! You can't run forever!"

Ellen analyzed the situation, and he was inclined to believe Sophie's words over those of the gangster, whose loyalty would be easy to change.

Apart from that, he also recalled Sophie's kindness towards him, and especially the way she had stood up for him. He genuinely wanted to repay her for the favor, and despite the potential risks involved, he decided to intervene in this matter.

He lightly pushed one gangster away who was running towards Sophie, and said firmly,

"Hold on a minute. Let's figure out a way to solve this-"

Sophie had barely breathed a sigh of relief when another gangster threatened Ellen;

"This isn't your business. Let us do our work and stay out of it!"

In spite of the warning, Ellen took a decisive step forward and proposed a solution to settle Sophie's debt.

"How about this? I'll help repay the debt, but first, I have a condition. Your entire gang needs to leave this place immediately."

Hearing this, Sophie instantly stepped forward from behind him. She was very concerned for Ellen's well-being, not knowing what the gangsters might do if he made himself their target in this way.

"Ellen, what are you saying? You don't have to do this!"

Ellen turned around,

"I never said I am doing it out of any obligation, did I? I just want to get rid of them…"

"But what if they come after you? How will you manage to save yourself every time? No, no, I can't let you bear the consequences for my sake. And moreover, it's a really large amount…"

She ended her sentence, feeling like she couldn't directly say that she doubted his financial capability. But after all, he was just an employee, and she knew how much his salary was.

Even after his part time jobs, there was no way he would have enough savings to help her out with the millions of dollars.

But Ellen didn't seem to understand,

"I'll handle it, you don't have to worry. Just let me-"

Seeing that the two of them were arguing amongst themselves in hushed tones, the gang leader became impatient.

He angrily intervened, stepping closer to them;

"What the hell do you two think you are doing? Just get out, you idiot, and let us deal with the girl! I know she has the money, and also how to get it from -"

Ellen didn't even break eye contact with Sophie as he swiftly swung his arm and grabbed the gang leader's neck. In one smooth motion, he pinned him to the ground with just one hand, and said in a flat tone;

"Didn't anyone tell you? It is rude to interrupt."

The gang leader tried to push him away and get up, but to his surprise, he couldn't even move his arm.

Seeing this, the other gang members rushed forward, eager to rescue their fallen leader.

But one warning from Ellen's mouth made them stop in their tracks.

"Don't even think about it. If any of you takes even one step closer, I will break his arm!"

Ellen, still pinning the gang leader down, turned his attention towards him and growled,

"Now, if your daily dose of beatings is over, you can leave too. You will receive the arrears with the settled amount in less than an hour. And now, take your members and get the hell out of my sight!"