Flashback: A hero's lamentation

A year ago....

"God damn it woman!" a gruff voice shouted with alarming anger, a large man stands by a car at the corner of a quiet lot. You stopped in your tracks, clutching your grocery bag as you noticed the scene from a split in two buildings that formed the alleyway to the carpark. The man seemed to be struggling, as he pushed a woman's head down and towards an open door on the left side of the vehicle, a white sedan.

The woman screamed and begged for help, but nothing but the quiet of the night in this part of town was there to answer. Except for you, yet while your brain screamed at you to move a muscle to save the woman, anything at all, your body was locked in a freeze, your limbs refused to move as you felt tremors and a cold sweat break. It felt like eternity, but the man eventually managed to shove the woman into the vehicle, as you saw her legs stick out like a sore thumb only to be pressed into the rear seats and engulfed in darkness while the man slams the door shut and proceeds towards the driver seat.

Your mouth was agape, your hands straight down and unmoving. Your mind a flurry of ideas and anxiety that was asking for just a little more time. And time was not afforded, as the car drove off with the hum of its engine, disappearing into the night down the street to the right.

On one hand, you felt a sense of relief, as the event had concluded out of your hands, yet you gained a nagging feeling, a worry for the woman. What if she was a victim? What could happen to her? You found yourself unable to sleep that night, angry and disappointed at yourself.

Maybe one day, you'd be better.