The Alley Man

Hey Guys, thanks for reading my very first story on wattpad! I'm making this up as I go along so please comment and tell me what you think of my writing.   : D

The door creaked open slowly, flooding the courtyard with the dim light radiating from her candle. Long and intimidating shadows were cast along the hedges and stone walls from the marble statues positioned around the yard. As swiftly and as stealthily as she could manage, Sophia closed the door behind her and stole into the night. Her candle illuminated her path as she crept farther from the house and closer to the road. Her eyes sweeping the darkness, a quiver of fear overcame her as she snuck through the shadows, trying to keep her imagination at bay.

It was well past mid-night, and Sofia had been visiting Charles, her courtier of about two months. They had been in each other's company for hours, and had lost all track of time. A wistful grin spread upon her face as she revelled in the memory of thier time together. Sofia was sure he loved her. Charles always paid her complements, smothered her in flowers and sent countless notes to the house. Whenever she was with him, he was charming,sweet, and a real gentleman.

Sophia was a lady, thrust into this wealthy society upon the death of her only brother Peter, whom had named only her as his beneficiary. He had been a very successful lawyer in his life and had accumulated quite a substantial amount of money, to all of which Sophia was entitled to. The news caused a stir among society, as her brother was married, and bore two daughters in his earlier years. Sophia didn't understand why her brother had left his family without any means to survive, so she made it her personal business to take care of his wife, Camile, and two daughters Penny and Charlotte.

Charlotte, with her pudgy cheeks and rounded arms and legs, was turning five in a few weeks. Her pale blond hair formed tight little ringlets that rested on her shoulders. She was blessed with her mother's faded blue eyes, and intoxicating beauty, although Sophia still classified her as cute. Penny, on the other hand was quite different, inheriting her father's bright auburn hair with a slight waviness to it that fell to the middle of her back, and framed her pretty face perfectly, as well as her eyes which were a stunning emerald green. Her fair skin was decorated with countless freckles, and she always wore an inviting smile on her face that reminded Sophia more of her late brother. Penny was nine years old, and practically a lady. Her wisdom always much more sophisticated than what her age would imply.

Sophia smiled at the thought of her nieces, and for a moment forgot the fact that she was a young lady walking alone through the streets of Langdale alone, hours after anyone of her class should be about. She glanced around herself and the darkness seemed to envelope her and everything in the street. Her home was still a while's jaunt, and Sophia began to regret not sending for her driver to deliver her home safely. She pulled her overcoat closer around her body as the cool September wind raised goose-bumps on her exposed neckline and face. Sophia began to walk briskly, gathering her long skirts in her hand as to avoid soiling and tripping on them. Her shoes forcing a clip clop sound to reverberate off the street and buildings around her and echoing in her ears.

A drop of hot wax dripped off the candle platform and onto her hand, forcing Sophia to drop the whole contraption and stop in the street for a moment. The echo of her footsteps seemed to carry on for a second longer than she expected them to, causing Sophia to doubt if they were even echos at all. Reaching for the candle, she realized with a wave of fear that the flame had been extinguished, and all she had left to guide her was the faint moonlight that peeked out from the clouds. Overcome with a feeling that she was not alone, Sophia continued her walk, nervously searching the street for anything unusual. Her footsteps were echoing again, and her stride faltered as she tripped on her long skirts, forgetting to hold them up. During her stumble, the soft padding of feet proceeded on without fault. That was definitely not an echo. Convinced she was being pursued Sophia whipped her head around, her soft brown curls sticking to her lipstick and tangling in her eyelashes, obstructing her view, but Sophia was certain she could see the dark figure of a man walking in her direction.

A cry of terror stuck in her throat allowing only a barely audible squeak to escape. She was being followed. Unable to increase her stride from anything more than a brisk walk, Sophia hurried in the direction of her home. If she could just get a few more blocks over, she could call to the dogs. Suddenly she was falling, her legs wrenched from beneath her. Sophia's face and chest plunged into the stone walk with such force, that the wind was knocked from her lungs. Scrapes and bruises making themselves evident immediately. Before she could right herself, two strong hands grasped her around the waist, and yanked her into the opening of an alley. Sophia writhed and kicked at her assailant in a feeble attempt to free herself from his impossible grip. He was pushing her against the unforgiving brick wall. Her hopes of escaping narrowing even more as he pinned her there with the lower half of his body. Sophia could feel his hot breath on her cheek, making her skin sticky. Abruptly, his voice broke the silence, causing Sophia to stiffen and s shiver ran up her spine as he spoke. "I'll have you now." His cynical voice carrying a tone of urgency as he yanked her hat roughly from her hair, grabbing some of her hair with it. Sophia cried out in pain, and she heard him chuckle at her outburst. A moment passed, but Sophia was too scared to look what he was doing. She felt his sharp intake of breath, and his hands slide from her body. "Ms. Montgomery?" The man gasped. Sophia blinked but could not focus her eyes through the blackness on the face in front of her. The voice seemed to recognize her, and maybe she was acquainted with him, but she could not place it. The man stepped back from her and Sophia took the advantage and sprinted out of the alley, breaking her heels in the process.

Stumbling as she ran on mangled shoes, Sophia managed to scramble up the walk to her home without being attacked again. She put her fingers to her lips and let out a whistle to call for her dogs. Her two German Shepherds met her near the door, and Sophia bent down and pet them, to soothe herself. She glanced behind her one last time, then took Skipper up to her bedroom for the remainder of the night.