Chapter 1
Listening to music while swiping off the floor was probably not a good idea. Being completely oblivious to who walked in and out of the store was not good either but how could someone act responsible when nothing had ever happened in the neighborhood? It was just an ordinary day, in an ordinary city.
The cashier was watching her closely. She wasn’t even swiping the floor correctly but she was listening to loud music and was using the broomstick to entertain herself. The peculiar creature was dancing, mouthing the lyrics and chewing gum. The cashier shook his head dismissively.
“You’re done for today, Evan.”
The boy sighed in relief and put down his hat. He went in the back to get his things and left his boss with the girl.
She didn’t even see him entering the store because she was too busy waving her hands around. The girl was perplexed when she hit her boss straight in the ribs and pulled one earphone out while making a balloon with the gum.
“Oh, hey boss! You came in early today.” She started leisurely.
He narrowed his eyes at her, grumbling some swears under his breath before finally answering loudly.
“Is that why I pay you, Abby? If I wanted you to offer a show to the customers, I would have told you.” He snapped, his loud voice echoing through the empty store.
She only blew the gum in his face as response.
The old man rolled his eyes before he pushed her towards a shelf.
“Clean.”
She rolled her eyes but started to swipe correctly.
A few minutes later, while the cashier was still preparing to leave and the girl was trying her best not to dance again, three men dressed in expensive flashy suits entered the store. None looked better than the other, their styles were pretty much the same yet their suits were different colors. Unlike those old gangster movies, these men looked dangerous but at the same time, a bit silly with their hair gelled back.
Abby watched curiously as the three men stopped in front of her boss and looked down on him with a scowl.
“Dewy, Dewy, Dewy. I thought you were smarter than that.” The man with the scowl begun.
Abby raised an eyebrow and leaned her whole weight on the broom, chewing gum loudly while watching the scene unfold. The guy in the middle was a bit taller than the others and held some kind of authority. Too bad his suit was dark red and he was a blond which, in Abby’s mind, didn’t work well.
Evan never anticipated suspense in his life and working in a store was not exactly life-threatening so when he opened the door and walked out of the back room, his eyes widened at the sight of the three men. He didn’t have to be a genius to figure out they were dangerous so, with one hand closed the door as silently as possible and sneaked out really slowly, hiding behind the counter. ?It was closer to the door and he could easily sneak out if the chubby man from the right would move further into the store.
“Look, I said I was going to pay in time. The month isn’t up yet.” Dewy stated feverishly, placing his hands on his waist.
The leader of the pack clicked his tongue, not content with the response he got.
“That’s the thing, Dewy. I don’t make the rules,” He slapped his hands together and pointed upwards. “He does.” He said before he glanced at Abby. She was a few feet from them. “Come here, kid.”
She gulped but once he narrowed his eyes at her, she complied.
“You see this guy here. Does he look trustworthy to you?” The blond in the unfitting red suit asked.
Abby glanced at her boss from the corner of her eye before shaking her head.
“Not really. He always cuts my salary.” She bluntly admitted.
The three men laughed loudly before the tallest one made a gun with his hand and pointed it at the boss.
“You little-”
The manager didn’t have time to scold his employee because the blond shouted.
“Bang! Bang! Bang!”
The manager closed his eyes but nothing happened. Dewy opened one eye to peek at the dangerous men before a loud shooting sound echoed throughout the store. Evan, who was hiding behind the counter, flinched. He tried to keep silent by covering hsi mouth so no one would actually notice him.
When the shot went through the manager’s head, blood got spilled on Abby’s cheek. Her eyes widened and her heart stopped for a minute. She turned to the three men and gulped, thinking that she will follow her former boss shortly.
However, the tall blond let his eyes travel up and down her body before making a sign for the others to come closer.
“You’re not half bad, kid. You’d bring good money if you’d get a proper training.” He added, his eyes never leaving her frame.
It was sickening from every point of view, especially Evan’s. He was too scared to move but he did; he creeped out, trying to see who died and if the chubby man moved. Luckily, he did and Evan suddenly got an idea.
The same tall blond was ready to grab Abby when a shelf spontaneously fell aside.
“Go check if there’s anyone else here.” He ordered the others and they actually complied without a word.
Abby raised an eyebrow, already getting over the shock of seeing someone getting shot in front of her.
Evan couldn’t stand there and do nothing, especially after someone already died. He hid behind the counter and stuck his head out to see her. He made a sign with his head towards the door before mouthing the word Run!. Luckily, she noticed and understood but she needed a diversion in order to run.
With no better idea, Abby smiled goofily and took a step closer to the blond. She spat the gum in his eye, surprising him and also Evan. However, that proved to be enough to make him fuss over, stumbling around, far from her.
Evan grabbed her hand, seeing how she wasn’t moving towards the door, and they ran out of the store. They could hear the gunshots and the angry screams behind and Abby glanced over her shoulder, the goofy smile still wide on her face.
“Ugly and chubby are running after us!” she shouted as if Evan wasn’t next to her, “We’re too slow! They’re going to catch up! Or even worse, call for backup!” She added.
Evan was panicking enough, she didn’t have to add more fuel to the fire.
“We have to steal a car!” Evan suddenly said and stopped.
Abby stopped behind him and stared at him like he was an idiot.
“We have to! Do you want to get caught? They’re going to kill me and make you a prostitute!” He started, visibly overreacting but at the same time, she realized they might do that after she spat gum in his eye.
They didn’t have a choice and ran in the middle of the street, Evan jumping in front of what looked like an average car. The driver stomped on the break and rolled down the windo, giving perfect opportunity for evan to open the door and pull him out forcefully.
Abby hurried in the passenger seat, not taking a second glance at the colateral victim.
“Go!Go!” She screamed once he got in.
The man screamed and almost hit Evan but the boy rolled up the window and stepped on the acceleration, getting them out of there as soon as possible. The common man started to run after them but they were moving too fast. His car was gone.
“Oh my God,”
She sighed in relief, feeling her heartbeats slowing down to a normal pulse. They could finally breathe and relax.
“I think we lost them for now.” He said calmly, checking on the review mirror.
Indeed, no one was following them. Abby took a last look behind before she rolled up her window and turned to the driver. Her behavior suddenly changed: her eyes were shining and she looked excited instead of being scared.
“Wasn’t that amazing? We had our first meeting with mafia.” She started, bitting her lower lip in excitement.
Evan frowned and threw her a weird look.
“Are you crazy? We witnessed our boss being killed. They won’t let us go easily. If they see us, they kill us.” He added, gripping the wheel at the thought.
“I know. It feels like I’m dreaming. One minute he was there and next-” She slapped her hands together loudly. “Bam! He’s dead and-” She remembered the blood on her cheek and wiped it off. “Isn’t this just crazy?!”
Evan rolled his eyes and decided she was still feeling the adrenalineso she was thinking she was in an action movie not in a real life threatening situation.
“You’re crazy. Have you not understood what happened? They’re going to kill us if they ever catch a glimpse of our faces!”
Evan was a nice guy who worked three jobs to pay his scholarship. Being dragged into a misunderstanding with the mob and being in a car with an insane girl wasn’t exactly the way he wanted to spend the night; or any night for that matter.
Abby leaned back and looked ahead, her joyful expression cracking here and there.
“Calm down, we lost them. We’re safe.” She answered, feeling her hands tremble now that the adrenaline was fading away.
“For now.” Evan added curtly. He took a sudden turn and stopped the car before closing his eyes and sighing dramatically.
Abby blinked curiously when he dropped his head on the steering wheel.
“We’re so doomed!” Evan whined.
Suddenly, her phone rang, surprising both of them. They glanced at each other suspiciously before she responded with Evan staring intensely at her.
“He-Hello?” She breathed out, not recognizing the number.
The voice on the other side was deep and manly. He breathed in the receiver, making her shiver.
“Abigail Lincoln and Evan Graham,” Her eyes widened at the husky voice, “Do you know the number one rule in my business?”He asked, sounding like he was smoking while talking to her because he was taking short breaks while speaking,“Never leave witnesses. Let’s keep in touch.”
That was all before he hung up.
“Who was that?” Evan asked, breathing heavily since he had an idea already.
Abby couldn’t look him in the eye. Even though she was acting all brave a few minutes ago, the color in her cheeks and the glint in her eyes disappeared.
“We’re doomed.” She repeated, looking down at her hands.
Evan groaned and dropped his head back on the steering wheel.
