Everything happened so fast.  As soon as she stepped off the elevator onto the appropriate floor, Mr. Larson had found her.  There hadn't been time for pleasantries, a forced smile on her face as she apologized for being late and refrained from snapping at him for being curt.  Since he was the one handling her case, she couldn't afford to get on his bad side.

Thinking she would be waiting for hours, much like a visit to the DMV, she was surprised by how quickly it went.  It was mostly conceding to things she didn't need, but as long as it put this mess behind her then she would agree to anything.  It was all very straight forward.  The only thing that made her hesitant was the exorbitant fee she was required to pay.  While she had no choice in the matter, she would be using a good chunk of her rent money to pay it off—not to mention the money she'd had to shell out for the lawyer.  She had no idea how she was going to make up for it.

“Thank you, Mr. Larson,” she responded when it was over, shaking his hand once it was offered.  The farewell as curt as his welcome, she had nothing of interest to add and left.  One problem might have been crossed off of her list, but now she had others to figure out.  Already she could feel a headache coming on, but at least she wasn't in a rush.  The bus ride back would give her time to think.

But Elizabeth didn't get very far before the deafening sound of emergency alarms rang though the building.  Everyone paused, looking at each other, some of them asking if this was some kind of fire drill they didn't know about.  Confusion and uncertainty flowed through the crowd before the security gates came crashing down to keep everyone inside and people began to panic.

Having been on her way out, Elizabeth was one of the ones closest to the exit.  Police were setting up barricades wearing heavy armor behind large shields while people were screaming and running in their direction.  Her hands wrapped around the bars to the gates as she leaned forward to get a better view.  People inside crowded around her, shoulders pressing together with strangers as everyone tried to catch a glimpse of what was happening outside.

Shots fired into the frantic crowd and she could hardly believe what she was seeing.  “What are they doing?!” she exclaimed in horror, the people around her crying out in a similar fashion.  Unsure at what was going on, she saw a woman fall from a stray bullet not meant for her.  Another person running up on her, Elizabeth thought they were there to help.

She was wrong.  They knelt down beside her, hands digging into her torso.  Still alive, she screamed hysterically as they ripped out her organs.  Suddenly feeling sick, Elizabeth lifted a hand to her mouth as she gagged and squeezed her way passed the other people in the lobby.  There were some like her who retreated from the site and others more morbidly curious that continued gathering around the windows to watch.  She had seen enough.

Reaching a hand out for one of the cushioned chairs to stabilize herself after the shock, she took a seat.  Fear and panic taking a hold of everyone now, she reached into her purse to pull out her phone.  Searching through her contacts she found the number to her ex and tapped it with her finger, pleading audibly for anyone nearby to hear for someone to pick up the phone.  It went straight to voice mail.  “Shit,” she whispered.  “Damn it.  Come on!”

A shriek from across the large room, Elizabeth shot up from her seat.  The phone fell from her hand onto the stone floor.  “What's wrong with her?” she heard.  Craning her neck, she could see a body laying on the floor.

“I don't know.  She just fainted,” someone answered.  People started leaving their posts at the windows to see what was going on around them.  Elizabeth bent down to pick up her phone.  The screen was cracked and blank.  She cursed as she tried to get it working again.

“She's okay,” someone called out loudly.  “Give her some room to breathe.  She's-”

A scream broke out.  Head whirling to see what was happening, there were too many people blocking her view.  All she could hear was a man yelling, “Get her off me!  Get her off!”