The Cloak and Dagger (Preview)

1 -

I stared at the row and row of cake mixes in front of me. My eyes were starting to cross from examining the same box of Pillsbury Devil's Food Cake for the last five minutes.

It was almost midnight, and there I was, standing in the middle of a 24-hour mart, buying damn cake mix. I wanted to go home and sleep after an exhausting day of classes at NYU, not stop to buy cake mix. But, my best friend Mackenzie's birthday was in a few days, and I promised I'd make her a cake. If I didn't buy the stupid cake mix now, I'd never find the time. And I made it a habit never to break promises.

It was a birthday cake, but there you were.

I heaved a disgusted sigh and finally just grabbed some random cake mix and dragged myself to one of the check out lines.

The guy behind the cash register gave me a bored look as he rang up my cake mix and frosting, shoved them into a paper bag. I handed over the cash in a bit of an apathetic stupor, grabbed my bag and left, walking out into the brisk late September air.

The subway entrance I usually took was a few blocks over. I didn't want to walk that far at night, but I didn't exactly have a choice. No extra cash for a taxi, and I wasn't sure if buses even ran this late.

I tugged my jacket closer around me and quickly marched down the dimly lit street. I'd lived half my life in New York City, but walking alone at night was something I'd never gotten used to. God only knew what was out there at night that nobody ever saw.

I'd just rounded the corner onto another street and passed right by an alleyway when I heard a loud crash.

The sound echoed through the nearly empty street, ringing loudly in my ears. I stopped walking.

Common sense told me immediately to keep on going and to not concern myself with whatever was going on down that alleyway. But then I heard a muffled groan and then what sounded like quiet sobbing.

Someone was in that alleyway groaning and crying?

Move, Holly! my mind shouted at me. Don't concern yourself with this. You do not need the trouble.

"Help..."

Someone really was in that alleyway. From the sound of it, they were in a lot of pain.

I moved forward without thinking.

"Hello?"

My voice echoed eerily around me. I sounded scared out of my mind and unsure, and I was.

I shouldn't have been standing at the opening of an alleyway where some horrific act might be taking place. I had enough common sense to know that venturing into the dark where something suspicious was happening was a recipe for disaster.

So why was I slowly creeping into the alleyway? Grabbing my phone out of my bag to use the small screen as some sort of light?

I had no idea.

The cramped, narrow space smelt of rubbish and decay and burned my nose. It might have been my imagination - it probably was - but I could've sworn I heard the pitter-pattering of tiny rodent feet.

"Hello?" I called out again, my voice cracking. "Is someone there?"

I took a few more tentative steps into the alleyway, listening intently for any sound that might have belonged to whoever was in trouble. Nothing.

This wasn't how I imagined spending the remainder of my Friday night. After a long day of classes, the only thing I was interested in was throwing myself face-down on my bed and sleeping until my alarm went off at six the next morning. And now I was edging my way along some dark, deserted alleyway, searching for some voice belonging to somebody that might not even be in trouble?