-Blake-
I woke up with sudden pain on the side of my head. At first, I thought someone had punched me, but then realized I simply hit my head on the window in my sleep. I cursed quietly and rubbed my aching temple while trying to wake up from my slumber. The bus I was on stopped shortly after, and the other travelers started scurrying out. We had arrived at our destination.
I had arrived at my new home.
Grabbing my bag from the floor, I stood up and started making my way to the front of the bus, but there was a lady on my way still gathering her belongings. I tried to squeeze past her, but since I was a big, tall guy, I ended up giving her a light shove. She had to grab the backrest to keep herself from falling.
"I'm really sorry, ma'am," I said politely.
She turned to look at me with an annoyed expression on her face, but the second her eyes landed on me, she broke into a smile – my classical features, brown eyes, and dark hair often had that effect, making my life so much easier.
"Oh, don't you worry about that, young man," she said, waving her hand dismissively.
"Have a great day now," I said with a charming smile and continued my way out, holding her wallet under my arm.
When I stepped outside, I was already home. The streets were my home. It had been like that for fourteen years, ever since I turned five. I didn't choose this life, but it was the only life I got, so I had to make the best out of it. Hopefully without causing too much trouble.
I stepped into the main building of the bus station and started looking for the restrooms. Once I found it, I locked myself inside one of the stalls and opened the wallet I stole. The lady had almost a hundred bucks in it! That was a really nice way to start my new life in this city. The lady wouldn't miss the money. Well, maybe a little, but she'd seemed loaded with those expensive clothes and a designer handbag of hers. Even the wallet had probably cost more than a hundred bucks.
I put the money safely into my own wallet, leaving the cards and receipts untouched, and then stepped out of the restroom. I headed straight to the woman who sold tickets and handed the wallet to her.
"Hey, I found this near the toilets," I told her with a charming smile, and she took it.
"Thank you, I'll put it in the lost-and-found box," she said, returning my smile.
"Great," I replied, already heading to the exit. I didn't want to stay any longer at the scene. I couldn't afford to run into the owner of the wallet – that could lead me into a situation I couldn't explain.
It was a sunny day, but the air was already getting chilly. At least it wasn't snowing yet. I still didn't have a place to stay during the winter, and I was so far up north that it would start snowing soon.
I moved around a lot, never staying too long in one location. I wasn't welcomed anywhere, so I had to keep moving. I usually spent a few weeks in one place, stealing what I needed to get by, and when the police got too close, I ditched the town and started again somewhere else. I was just a petty thief, no one important or to be concerned about, so the cops weren't in a hurry to catch me. That, or I was even more clever than I thought.
I spent the day wandering around the busy streets, getting to know my new surroundings. I'd never been there before, so I took my sweet time looking around. I always stayed in bigger cities – strangers were easily spotted in small towns.
The big cities had their downsides, of course. There were more witnesses, more cameras, more security, and people were used to look out for thieves. There were also other criminals, and they were protective over their territories. It was important for someone like me to know which part of the city belonged to whom. I was on good terms with a few gangs, so I usually stayed in areas that belonged to them – or at least tolerated their members. I knew this city was home to a gang that would most likely let me stay in their territory, so I tried to search for their signs.
This was all familiar to me. Over the years, I'd learned to get by. Mom had been practically homeless too, and that was pretty much everything I knew about her. She abandoned me when I was around five years old. Or then she died. I never heard from her after she disappeared, so it was entirely possible she got herself killed.
After losing her, I had to take care of myself. I had no one else to turn to. Except for the other homeless people who had taken this miserable kid under their wings. But I didn't feel sorry for myself. My life was pretty perfect with no worries or attachments. I was free to go wherever I wanted and do whatever I pleased. Even though I was alone, I didn't feel lonely. I could strike a conversation with anyone anywhere and stay for a chat before continuing my way.
Life was supposed to be an adventure, and I wasn't the type of person who wanted to settle down.
As I was standing in the middle of a street that was lined with different restaurants, comparing their menus, I spotted an attractive woman eyeing at me with a tempted smile on her face. I smiled back at her, knowing I could have an easy place to stay for the night if I went to chat her up. Another reason why I felt blessed over my good looks.
But I didn't feel like it this time, I rarely did, so I just turned my back on her. I'd met girls and even a few guys to have fun with, but I never felt the urge to commit to one person or even stay around long enough to know more than just their names. I loved my life as a lone wolf.
Company often meant trouble, after all. I once tried to pull a gig with another thief, but it had been a total disaster. I barely walked out free. The other guy got caught because of his stupid mistake that involved a jewelry store with motion sensors. I never made that same mistake again – I never tried to rob another jewelry store either.
And if joining forces with other criminals was bad enough, relationships were even worse. Why would anyone want to get caught in one? I was as free as anyone could ever be, so why would I trade that away for such a fleeting thing as love?
I chuckled quietly at the thought of it. Relationships were for people with nothing else to do. Having a companion meant selling my soul to that person, and mine wasn't for sale. Relationships were traps to bind people to one place where they were forced to have a job, wear a tie and buy a nice house in the suburbs. A relationship was nothing but an endless lawn to mow, and the days would repeat themselves in an endless loop. I had seen thousands of husbands pushing their lawnmowers day after day, walking around the same yard day after day, being tied to that noisy thing day after day, losing the last bit of freedom and will to escape.
There was no way in hell I'd let anyone tie me to a lawnmower like that. No, I was a free man, and I would also stay free.
"Careful there," I chuckled at my own reflection in a window. "You better not try tempting fate."
I continued walking, feeling amused. I didn't actually believe in fate.
*****
The city actually sucked. It was too clean, and there were only a few places where I could spend my nights, and those were some real rat-holes. However, I was too stubborn to give up on it just yet. During the days, I roamed the streets, but the city really didn't offer much for a thief like me, so eventually, when I finally admitted that the place was a bust, I decided to pull one of my bigger stunts and vanish.
The plan I had in mind was simple. Kind of. I only needed a bike, some fancy clothes, a couple of tickets to an opera, and a gullible, rich woman.
So, when the night fell, I "borrowed" an expensive-looking bike. I was totally going to return it because I only needed it while I was in town, which wouldn't be that long. After I got the bike, it took me a few hours to find a secluded neighborhood with tall gates and security cameras – those were always the best places to find rich houses. I hid the bike near the metal fence, grabbed my backpack, and started walking around, looking for a hidden area or a blind spot where I could climb over the fence without being spotted. I was careful not to go too close to it so people wouldn't find me suspicious.
It didn't take me long to find a promising place where the cameras didn't reach. There were tall trees close by, and I was sure I could use them to get over the fence. It was really dark, and the surrounding streetlights were dim, so I hoped the lack of light gave enough shelter for me to approach the trees safely. The lowest branches had been cut off to prevent people from climbing up, but that didn't stop me. I took some distance to the tree before I turned around and dashed towards it, gaining enough speed to jump.
I was proud of my parkour skills. I was good and tall enough to get a hold on the lowest branch. Then I pulled myself up and turned to look around, hoping no one had spotted me. I couldn't see a single soul, so I continued my way up. There was a branch right above my head, close enough to the fence for me to jump over it. I climbed on it and stood up to see what was on the other side.
I could see only a few houses from where I was standing. The rest of the view was hidden behind a sea of trees, so I could only hope there were plenty of houses to choose from. The whole place was built on the southern side of a tall hill, facing the vast lake, and according to the maps, it was shaped like a crescent moon, following the base of the hill. There weren't supposed to be any buildings on the higher ground, only woods, so I hoped I could set up a camp up there.
Forcing myself to focus, I balanced my weight on the branch and jumped without wasting another second. I landed on soft ground on the other side and took a quick glimpse at my surroundings. There were some thick bushes right in front of me, and behind them was a huge, mansion-like house.
I sneaked closer to the bushes, keeping an eye out for anything that moved. I made my way towards the back of the place, towards the forest, staying in the shadows the entire time. The cameras on the fences were pointed away from the houses, but these people would've been complete idiots if they didn't have cameras of their own. Sure enough, I started seeing more and more of the forever-alert lenses around me as I passed by the houses.
It took me almost an hour to scout the entire place. I spent another hour looking for the best house to target. Finally, I spotted one that was far away from the other houses, right next to a steep cliff. It had been built as far up on the hill as possible, where it overlooked the entire neighborhood. The terrain got really rough right after that, so no one in their right mind had even tried to build a house there. I also wished no one in their right mind would try to go for a walk in that area because the cliff and the forest behind it seemed like the best possible place for me to stay.
Climbing up the hill was a whole other story. It was hard with my heavy backpack. I couldn't see much in the darkness, and I couldn't afford to make any sounds, so I had to move slowly. But I finally made it to the top. I placed the bag on the ground, sat down on the edge of the cliff and turned my attention to the house.
I couldn't tell much about the white house, except that it looked new, had three stories and a hell of a lot of windows. The yard was big and spacious, and there were two nice cars parked in front of it.
I was happy and excited about this finding. It was the best target in the whole neighborhood, but I had to keep watching it for a few days to make sure it really was suitable for me. That was why I had brought my backpack with me. I'd need to go find more equipment if I needed to stay there longer, but I wasn't in a hurry. I had packed enough food and water for a couple of days.
I also had a sleeping bag with me. I retreated from the cliff and went to find a spot to spend the night. I found a good place under some trees and laid out the sleeping bag. Since it was too dark for me to do anything without the risk of falling off the cliff, I decided to get some sleep and continue making plans in the morning.