Pierce and Scarlett are two unique fragments who cross pathways in a low-end motel. He is running away from his haunted past, while she is trying to build a future from broken pieces. As the pair collides in a series of trying events, they must figu...
If they're fishing around the ally, they must be low-ranked. Ricky calls these guys bottom feeders because they'll do anything to crawl up the chain. They'll do anything which makes them terrifying.
'Show no fear, Scarlett,' I mutter in my mind.
Keeping my head low, I hurry away from the alley with the hope they won't notice me.
"Oi, you're Scarlett, right?" the taller one calls out.
"Um, yeah." I sigh.
"We're lookin' for your father, you seen him?"
"I don't keep tabs on the guy." I shrug my shoulders.
"If you see him, tell him he owes us money."
"Okay." I nod.
I quickly walk away from the pair, but before I can get away, they call my name once more. My heart rattles inside of my chest, my hands shaking. I fold my arms to avoid showing my fear.
Playing nice, I turn around and smile, "Yes?"
"I think I remember you."
"Ay, what do you remember?" the other one asks.
The pair grin at each other like two cunning foxes.
"That he uses her for as payment. I'm ready to collect that payment. How about you?" The pair staggers forwards, greedy smiles consuming their faces.
I suck in a deep breath and remind myself to stay calm. You cannot show fear in the presence of danger.
"He owes you the money, not me," I explain.
"Maybe we can take a down payment, ay Johnny?" the second one suggests.
The pair gruffly laughs at their devious plan. Beads of perspiration gather on my forehead, giving me away. They stalk further towards me, so I bite my lip.
"Come on, it'll be fun!" they cheer.
Instead of running, I stand my ground. There's no telling how fast the pair could run or how far I'd get from them on foot. I've never been good at running, always tripping over something.
"I'm warning you. Stay away," I yell.
The first guy grabs my wrist and yanks me forward. My shoes scuffle across the beat-up pathway. He drags me towards the alleyway, so I scream. My throat burns and the look of horror only amuse them.
"Ricky will come after you."
"We're not afraid of Ricky," they giggle like children.
"You better be scared of me then." Elbowing him in the stomach, I kick his leg and drop to the ground. My palm hits the floor which sends a shape shooting pain along my wrist.
The guy quickly recovers and lunges towards me. I jab my leg in his direction, hoping to deter his efforts. It only makes the man angrier.
I have no choice, so I reach for my only strength.
Pulling the gun out of my pocket, I point the nose towards the man's head and pray I won't have to pull the trigger. It's cold and heavy in my hands, but easy enough to aim.
"This is your final chance," I warn. "Get out of here."
But my hands shake and my voice quivers. They know I'm weak.
"Put that –"
The sound of the gunfire echoes down the empty street. My heart relentlessly pounds within my chest, pumping adrenaline through my body.
Blood splatters across the pavement along with his brains on the building walls. His body falls to the ground like a toppling building.
The remaining guy looks at me, eyes wide open with shock.
"Do you want to be next?"
With a shake of his head, the guy quickly back steps and runs away, tail between his legs.
Shoving the gun in my pocket, I scramble to my feet and take off running. The lines of the buildings being to blur into one streamline of black as tears swell into my eyes. My heart races to the sound of my feet hitting the ground.
What the hell did I just do, did I really kill someone?
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