Chapter 1
Gray Ragno’s mind was strangely quiet, he understood what he had just done and how wrong it was, but his emotions were absent. The only thing he felt was the overpowering urge to run, he was in a very dire situation, he knew he would not enjoy the consequences. He looked down at his old friend, who thought he knew his friend so well as they laid unconscious slowly bleeding out on the dark, cold, empty sidewalk. He knew he should have felt remorse or guilt or something, he didn’t. What Gray felt was fear, he felt alone, and he was scared; he had once promised himself that he would never hurt anyone, he had just broken that promise. Tears slowly dripped down his face, he had fought so hard to keep that promise, it hurt him for it to all be for nothing.
After what seemed like a lifetime of silence in Gray’s mind, he heard a familiar voice. “It’s time to go, you know what will happen if we stay.” the voice said softly, the voice belonged to Gray’s closest friend Freida Winslow. She knew him better than anybody else, he would confide everything to her. Gray knew she was right, he reluctantly abandoned the scene as Freida started telling Gray exactly why he shouldn’t have done what he did. “You won’t be able to escape for long, you won’t be able to get by, it won’t take long for them to find you, you will never be free again.” Gray tried to ignore her but it was near impossible as she would never shut up. “Then why did you tell me I should do it?” He shouted, “I never wanted this to happen.” tears were blurring his vision as the gravity of what he had just done dawned on him. After their absence, helplessness, guilt, emptiness, and sadness were suddenly overwhelming him.
Gray fell to his knees sick to his stomach, he was once again unsure of how to deal with his own bad decisions, it seemed that no matter how many mistakes he made he would never learn from any of them. He feels his only choice is to run, he was told his only choice is to run. He got up and ran, he did not know where he was going and he was scared. “Where will we go now?” asked Freida, “We can never go back now, you are too far in” she said. Gray felt lost, his black hair bristling in the wind as he ran into the city, Gray’s mind was racing as one thought after another berated him as he fled. “This is really bad but we are in this together and I won’t leave you” Freida reassured Gray as he ran through the dark and quiet city, only a handful of street lights to light the way. Gray knew he had messed up but felt comforted knowing he was not alone, he knew that no matter what he did or how much trouble he was in, Freida would be right by his side.
The roaring of helicopters swarming above could be heard as Gray rushed past the black, dusty windows of closed stores. Gray could see the beams of light raining from the helicopters, looking for him. He heard sirens coming up behind him, “There is nowhere you can hide, there is nowhere you can run.” Freida said angrily. Gray knew she was right, she always was, but what could he do but try? A loud crash echoed through the night as Gray shattered the window of a small boutique, he carefully climbed through the window into the store. A crunch of glass was heard as he stepped away from the window, “This will never work, they are coming to get you” Freida remarked. He was exhausted as he stumbled further into the boutique, he made his way to the back of the small boutique where there was a door that was for employees only. He opens the door to find a small supply closet, a mop in the corner and cleaning supplies litter the shelves. He quickly turned on the light and locked the door, the sound of the helicopters and the police cars kept getting louder. “You are going to die a long and painful death.” Freida said coldly, Gray had a sinking feeling that she was right, after all, why would she lie?
Gray heard a loud crash as the door to the boutique was slammed open, “This is the police, show yourself Gray Ragno!” a loud deep voice yelled. Gray was frozen in place, his icy blue eyes wide with shock, he couldn’t move, he couldn’t speak. “I told you this was what would happen.” said Freida angrily. A loud banging echoed through the supply closet as someone pounded on the door, “Open this door, this is the police!” the same deep voice yelled, now right outside of the door. “This is where it ends for you.” Freida spoke harshly, she sounded angrier than the police did. “I don’t want it to all end like this.” Gray muttered weakly to Freida, “Oh yeah? What are you going to do about it?” Freida shouted. Gray felt helpless, there was nothing he could do, Freida would not stop shouting at him, “You did this to yourself. This is all your fault. You were never enough.” she yelled. As the sirens, and the helicopters, and now the banging on the door got louder, Gray couldn’t take it anymore. Gray took out his knife and flipped it open, he plunged it into his stomach.
As dark crimson blood started to gush out all the sirens stopped, the whirring of the helicopters had gone, the banging at the door ceased. The most unsettling of all to Gray was that Freida had stopped yelling, in fact she was completely gone. The agonizing pain set in and Gray instantly regretted what he had done, yet again. He mustered the strength to sit up, clenching his stomach with one hand as he reached with the other for the doorknob. The lock clicked and the door slowly opened, Gray fell back down as his vision started to blur. Nobody was on the other side of the door, the boutique was quiet. Gray did not know what was happening, he was scared, confused, and in pain. Gray tried to get out of the closet but he did not have the strength, he could not even call out for help. Once again he had messed up and his mind was quiet, he was all alone and coming in and out of consciousness. Life slowly left Gray’s eyes and for the last time, Freida was right.
Start writing here…
