The Red widow

Part 36: murder

For a second I feel weightless before I hear Alexi scream as our bodies crash onto the ground. Earth and grass overturning as we fall onto the ground. Stones dig into my skin as I roll onto my side gasping for air. My lungs burn at every breath which i savoir happy it is not my last. I hear Alexi cough beside me as he staggers to his feet. Helping me up, I wipe the mud from my hands onto my trousers.

A heart stopping boom fills the air as a cacophony of screams eco around me. Glancing up I see that the whole building is now engulfed in flames. I clench my jaw to stop my mouth falling open in horror as amber flames start to lick the window panes. The stench of burning bodies and smoke makes my head spin. Tears prick my eyes as I watch the building slowly start to crumble. I should be happy to see this awful place burn but at the same time in my mind it was still my home. It was the only place where I felt like I had a childhood.

The silence which followed made my skin crawl, the screams still echoing in my ears as we started to walk. Neither of us have the strength to run. I reach into my pocket and brush my fingers against the cool metal, fantasizing what is inside the box is better than actually opening it afraid of the horrors that it could contain. We followed a small dirt path, back towards the village, a cloud of smoke lingering behind us like a stark reminder of what just occurred. Eventually curiosity gets the better of me.

" I need to tie my shoelace" i lie

Alexi sighs but waits, I reach into my pocket and pull out the box and prise it open using a stone.

A piece of yellowed paper falls onto my palm. I unfold it carefully so as not to rip it. It is an address to a house. Cleveland ohio. I quickly stuff it into my pocket

The village no longer looked the same. Smoke clouded our vision like fog, where houses used to stand were crumbering remains, people littered the streets and roads. Blood stained the cobblestones and shrapnel stuck to my shoes. Pulling my hood over my head I tried to block the stares from moon eyed children and condescending adults. Alexi stayed silent, keeping a hand on the knife in his pocket.

I wanted nothing more than to run. Run as far as my legs would carry me. I wanted nothing more than to be walking here. Alexi didn't look any happier with the situation, walking as far as he could from me as if he was trying to disassociate himself with me. "Go away, we have nothing for you. Leave" a strangled cry echoed from the air.

I turned my head sharply to face a woman, the life sucked from her cheeks making her pale face look as if it was hallowed out. Her wispy blonde hair that was once long and healthy was now charred and burnt. "You lead them here" she snarled as she walked closer to me. My throat felt like it was filled with gravel as i spoke, "i'm sorry"

She scoffed, spitting blood onto my feet. "Tell that to all those people who died, sorry doesn't bring back the dead"

"I didn't mean for anyone to get hurt, i didn't want to hurt anyone"

"Bullshit" she shouted edged so close to me that we were nose to nose,

" your a murder, their blood is on your hands"

Those words hit harder than I thought they would. I came here to save people. I should be walking back with a dozen girls but now I walk with a dozen corpses. I try to speak but the words feel ripped from my throat. "Get away from her '' alexi barks holding a gun to the woman's head. She smiles at me, her eyes filled with hatred and rage as Alexi grabs her by the arm walking her from me.

I glance at my hands, they feel heavy as if blood is dripping from them. My heart aches with grief. I watch as the girl tries to hit Alexi, her hands clawing at his skin. The sound of the bullet firing doesn't surprise me as the woman drops to her knees. Her mouth whispered the same phrase over and over.

Murders.

Alexi walks back over to me, his eyes tilted to the ground. No sense of remorse painted on his face. He wipes the blood from the gun on his trousers. "There is a bus which leaves here every hour." If we can get to the city center, there will be an airport. I can get us to ohio" he mutters.

I glance up in surprise, how he sees the note. "You aren't very slik, red widow." he says, holding the paper between his thumb and forefinger. I quickly snatch it back. "Ever been to America?" he asks as we continue to walk. "Briefly, you" i ask

"You will like it" he says immediately, shutting down my question. We soon make it to the bus stop and onto the bus with nothing more than a sideways glance. We take our seats and I watch as the village starts to drown from view. The streets start to fade, engulfed in smoke, and the screams and the woman with them.

I glance at Alexi wondering how he can kill without carrying the burden with him. Every life I take feels like a drop of blood on my already gushing ledger which I desperately try to clean with my hands, which just ends up staining them. It's like when I try to do something good more people die. I wonder why I try anymore. Maybe I was just made to kill. Maybe there is no humanity left in me. All of it washed in a flood of red.

I lean back in my seat, gazing out of the window watching as the fields and dense forest start to fade into villages, villages start to transform into towns and buildings grow from trees into stone structures. The smell of manure was replaced with gasoline. The bus stops a little outside the town center.

I'm the first out of my seat not wanting to stay another second in the stuffy bus. I wipe the blood from my palms on my trousers before signaling for Alexi to get up. I walk a couple steps ahead of him, my nose creasing at the heavy smell of rotting rubbish and car fumes, although I prefer it over the stench of blood. We weave our way through the hoards of people, I watch most people keep their heads down, most distracted by their phones or misbehaving children to even notice us brush past them.

We stop outside a small coffee shop, it is stuffy, filled with people but it is better than being noticed. The more people the better. " order us something and clean yourself up a bit. Customs won't let someone covered in blood and dirt into the states" alexi mutters brushing past me handing me a wallet filled with cash, as he makes his way towards the door. "Where are you going?" I hiss as he opens the door. "Just stay here till i get back" he mouths before disappearing out of sight.

Where is he going. I wonder as I walk confidently up to the barista at the cash register. "Two black coffees and a sandwich" the words rolled off my tongue with ease as I handed the man two bills. "That table is free," he nods to a lopsided wooden table in the corner of the room. Perfect. "Do you need a first aid kit?" he asks, nodding to my soaked sleeve. "I'm fine, but do you by any chance have a bathroom ?" I ask smoothly trying to hide the bitterness in my voice as I make my way over to the door he pointed at.

I make my way into the cubicle, one brief glance in the mirror is enough for me to notice the state that I'm in. I looked like I had jumped out of a window and rolled down a hill. Which I had. I grabbed some toilet tissue and tried to wipe the mud and blood from my face. Luckily I hadn't sustained any major cuts or wounds apart from a couple grazes on my shoulder and face. I carefully slip the hoodie from my body, dumping it on the ground as I carefully tear the bandage from my skin.

The wound has slightly healed but not enough for the bleeding to stop. Wincing, I grab some tissue and hold it to the wound ignoring the sickening pain which follows. I grab the bandages and dunk them in the sink, rising them with hot water watching as the gauze starts to dampen into a red bloody mess. Great. I should have taken the barista's offer.

I try to find anything else I could use to wrap up my arm but find nothing. I braid my short hair into a twisted bun before checking myself in the mirror. I look significantly cleaner even though it feels like weeks since I stepped into the shower in Alexi's apartment. Before I leave I rinse my hands with soapy water, I watch as the sink starts to turn scarlet and turn away, I glance at the bottle of bleach in the corner. But I know that no matter what I use the red will forever coat my hands. Forever dripping, From my own blood or the ones i have murdered.