Wednesday 25 September 2013

Red Handed: Short story

Tala ran as fast as her feet would carry her.  She didn’t even give time to think about the attention she was drawing to herself as she hurried through the dark streets, her hands dripping blood. She didn’t know where her clothes had gone but she was running through the streets in nothing more than a borrowed dress shirt in too crimson in the blood of another. Her eyes could barely focus and the light of the moon seemed too bright as her blue eyes squinted. Her feet were bare, scratched with rocks and glass with each step she took. A hand grasped her arm and she heard a distant sounding voice asking If she was okay. She ripped her arm away and turned the corner stumbling into the nearest alley. Tears began to stream down her cheeks, hot against her skin in the cold damp night. As she came to a stop against the wall she slid down to the ground trying not to think of what filth was against her bare skin. Her eyes were blurred with tears but she could feel her body shaking closed her eyes for a moment she listened as her heart raced within her chest her hands resting on her knees bloody palms up to the sky. What had she done? She didn’t remember any of it, not after the bar. Her mind flashed back to the apartment, she woken up in. There had been blood everywhere, the bed, the walls, the floor and none of it as far as she could tell, belonged to her. She didn’t know who it belonged to but judging from the state of her hands she could only assume she’d had something to do with it. The moment she’d heard someone in the hall she’d bolted through the fire escape and out into the streets and she didn’t stop running. She stared at her hands and took a careful breath as she felt her ribs tighten. Her body ached, every muscle, every joint felt like it had been ripped and snapped just to be taped back together with hope to heal. A voice, still distant sounding pulled her out of her trance. “Miss Canagan” her bright blue eyes lifted to gaze at the man who had spoken to her, golden eyes stared back at her but the shadows seemed to conceal the rest of him. She could barely make out the features of his face but she was certain he was smirking at her. “You’ve been frighteningly easy to track” he said stepping closer and crouching down so he was suddenly at eye level with her. His eyes looked her over as though he were inspecting a new car he was considering buying. His eyes stopped at her hands and if there had been any doubt of a smirk before, it was obvious now as watched him. “A shame about your boyfriend, I’m sure you two would have been a match made in heaven…you know, if you hadn’t ripped him to shreds” he said and the memories carefully creeped back into her mind. Boyfriend, no she didn’t have one of those, but there had been a guy at the bar, she’d gone home with him and she’d-- the thought of what he’d said caused her to lose whatever was left of her lunch as she leaned over and threw up in the alley, tears appearing in her eyes again. “Ah yes, get him out of your system” he commented which really wasn’t helping manners. He waited for a few seconds before he gripped her arms tightly pulling her with force off the ground. “There’s no time for your conscience they’re looking for you and you need to be briefed on a cover…you’re coming with me” he said harshly his voice sounded almost like a growl as I stared at him but didn’t fight the hold. Whoever, or whatever was planned for her, it couldn’t have been worse than what she’d just done, what she’d woken up to find. She noticed her body was still shaking but she nodded accepting the unknown fate. “Now, there’s a good girl”

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