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beneath her.  Sophie struggled to stay upright.
    Pulling forward with all the power she could muster while he pulled harder in opposition made tension in the fabric and she couldn’t move.  Once it was so strong that the shoulder seam bit into her right arm, she jerked straight back, her arm sliding out smoothly and the man reeled backwards falling off his feet.
    Sophie stumbled but managed to stay on her feet, trying to run but feeling sluggish now.  Focusing on the people walking at the end of the alley, some stopping to give change to the beggars that stood beyond the edge of the brick cavern.
    Quickened steps were behind her, one glance and she could see he was in pursuit again.  He was yelling to her, she heard ‘sorry’.  Sorry wouldn’t make the blood stop seeping out or sharp pains dissipate.  The cold bit into her face but the heat in her side was localized.
    Faltering forward, her feet began to slow, she thought she was running but she couldn’t be or she would have gotten out of there sooner but the pain and smells were making her nauseous, her lungs were burning.
    She didn’t look back but gritted her teeth and from her very core took strength from somewhere, almost there, the salvation of the street.  A few more steps and Sophie slammed square into the chest of a man when her legs couldn’t hold her up any longer.  The force of the collision made him stagger but instinctively he grabbed her arms to steady them both catching her, preventing her collapse.
    “She told me to,” the homeless man yelled behind her, “she told me to, she saw you” he repeated and then she didn’t hear him at all.
    At first, she couldn’t focus.  Embarrassed, she tried to right herself but even clutching his coat lapels, she could hardly pull herself up without his help.  She was breathing hard from the run, lungs aching, wincing with every intake of breath.  Her body broke out into a cold sweat.
    “Are you alright?” There was something familiar about his voice, quiet tenor, gentle but with the streetlight behind him, she still couldn’t see his face but it was hard to keep her eyes open too.  Gasping, she pulled on him to stand and he straightened her up on her trembling legs but didn’t let go yet.  What she really wanted to do was to collapse into him, the warmth of him, the steady and calm feeling that just his voice offered.  She still couldn’t catch her breath to give him an answer but nodded yes.
    Whether it was on her face or not that she was actually in pain, she wasn’t sure but his attention turned to the blood stain on her shirt and trousers, her forearm instinctively pressed there.  “You’re hurt,” he said matter of fact and put his arm around her shoulders and steered her down the street.  Noticing she was without a coat, she was shaking uncontrollably.
    Under the street light now shown on both of their faces and when they looked at each other they mutually had the look of surprise and recognition.  Panic settled into her nerves but a smile curled his lips and he seemed glad to see her but his expression immediately turned to concern.  His face was only a few inches from hers he said, “It’s you.”
    Run.  Run again, she thought.  She should run away from this man but he was simply the only thing holding her up so even if she wanted to run, she could not.
    She opened her mouth to acknowledge him but her clamped jaw would not release.  “The hospital is this way,” he said and her heels dug into the ground.
    “No,” was all she could manage through clenched teeth.
    Oliver looked at her, ecstatic that she had come back into his life, even more dramatic than the first time however, she was hurt and bleeding.  After the episode on the train, it didn’t surprise him that she didn’t want to go to the hospital or that she had been attacked for that matter. 
    He could drag her kicking and screaming to the end of the block of course but he pushed her against the wall, “Try