It's my new story!

I got this idea when I was reading Raven's Gate by Anthony Horowitz recently and I was just thinking, what if Matt didn't do the LEAF project? What if he decided to go to jail instead? So I decided to turn it into an MR fic :) This first chapter is based on what happens in the first part of Raven's Gate, btw.

Warning: Max is majorly OOC in this chapter. Like, she doesn't really seem like Max at all. But I'm betting that I will subconsciously do the story more in her style as it continues :P Oh, and she'll get more kickass as well ;)

Max POV

Why did I do this? I know that I shouldn't have. I know it was wrong. I didn't even want to do it. But I did. All for money.

I was standing next to my friend Alicia, looking up at the big warehouse in front of us, on the outskirts of Cody, a tiny town in Wyoming. Wind whipped around us and dark clouds completely blocked out the stars. All in all, not a very nice night.

'Are you sure there's no other way?' My voice sounded small and weak in the wind. Alicia looked at me in a very patronizing way.

'You're not trying to back out on me are you?' She asked. 'Because if you are, then I'm not sure I want you to hang out with me anymore.'

'Of course I'm not!' I tried to inject as much anger and attitude as I could into my voice but failed miserably. We were both the same age, sixteen, but whereas Alicia and her little gang of followers practically ruled the school, I was a complete loner, a loser. And so when Alicia decided to let me into her group, to take me under her wing (haha), it would have been an understatement to say I was flattered, and so I gladly accepted. Even though I didn't like a lot of the things she and her friends did. Like underage drinking. And smoking. And shoplifting. I just went along with it and kept my mouth shut, because I didn't want to lose my newfound high position. And I could lose it any time, as Alicia had been kind enough to point out just then. I didn't really know if I actually wanted to be in her group anymore. Some things just aren't worth it, you know?

She saw through my transparent bluff instantly and sighed. 'Look, it's a very simple plan.' She said impatiently. 'I've already gone through it with you. We pick the lock on the window, break into the security room where the camera screens will be showing. There aren't any guards; they record the video from the cameras. They look over the film about once a month, so we have plenty of time before that happens, right?' I nodded. Alicia's older brother had broken into this place before, so he knew how to get in to the warehouse. Still, Alicia's brother was a complete idiot, so I didn't know how much we could trust him. Probably best not to mention that to Alicia though. She just might take offence.

'So we smash the monitors and computers and go through to the main warehouse. Got that?' I nodded again, even though I could see a huge hole in this plan. 'We grab everything we can and get out of there as fast as we can. We sell all the stuff and suddenly we have all the bling bling we need! Foolproof!' Finally I could stay silent no longer.

'But alarms! They'll have alarms won't they?'

'They won't have alarms! Why would they? This is a deserted warehouse in the middle of nowhere!' Alicia snapped. But there was an undercurrent of tension to her voice, and I knew I'd thought of something she hadn't. Don't worry, that's not unusual. Remember what I said about her brother? It runs in the family.

'Go get the packs.' She ordered me. I obediently picked up two bags lying on the ground about two meters away. They each contained a crowbar, with which we were going to smash the computers inside. 'Come on, let's go.' Alicia's voice was quieter now that our burglary had started. We crept cautiously around the side of the building to where we knew the security room was. Alicia laid her pack quietly on the ground and produced a long thin wire, which she carefully inserted into the lock on the window in the wall. She jiggled it around a bit, while I silently prayed it wouldn't open. I wish I had never come now. It was just too risky. A moment later there was a tiny click and Alicia was able to push open the window. She quickly slipped inside, and after a slight hesitation, I followed, not making a sound.

When I entered, I stopped and listened anxiously for the alarms that I was sure would go off any moment. Nothing happened. I breathed a sigh of relief. I was wrong. There really weren't any alarms set up. We were safe. For now.

I couldn't help but wonder at the lack of security in this place. Alicia shouldn't have been able to open the lock on that window with just a piece of wire. And if there were no guards, then there really shouldn't have been a window at all. There wasn't even an alarm! Seriously, do the people who own this place want it to be robbed or something?

'Hurry up!' Alicia snarled at me, taking the crowbar out of the bag and weighing it in her hands. I mimicked her movements and took a moment to survey the room we were in. Over on one side monitors were displaying different parts of the warehouse on their screens. Next to the monitors, computers hummed and whirred softly as they transferred the images they were picking up from the cameras onto the monitors. A plastic cup sat beside one of the computers. This struck me as odd, though I couldn't think why. Other than that, the room was empty.

Alicia strode quickly over to the surveillance equipment and brought her crowbar down hard on top of one of the machines, creating a resounding 'crack!' and leaving a large dent in the piece of technology. I hurried to join her.

It would be extremely bad, I thought as I smashed yet another monitor screen, if there really was a guard here and he heard us. We'd be in big trouble then.

After about two minutes had passed, we'd made sure that everything in the room was nice and safely broken. I'd even cracked the cup for good measure. Always good to be thorough.

I had felt good destroying things. It was like I was letting all the anger that had built up inside me flow away through the vandalism. I'd had a hard life. I was poor. It was the very reason I was here. My parents were indescribably cruel. I went to a dumb school where everybody except Alicia had ditched me. Even the teachers had given up on me.

I didn't like breaking the law, but it really was refreshing in a strange sort of way. 'Now we grab everything we can and get the hell outta here.' Alicia told me. We walked through a door on my left and into the main building. I stopped and gasped. I couldn't help it. The room we were in was huge. And it was packed to the brim with expensive technology, just begging to be taken. Again my mind went back to the mysteriously missing security conditions.

'I'll take the DVDs, you get the smaller more expensive stuff. Ok?' Alicia said. I ran off to the mobile phone section and hastily started shoving all different brands and models of phones in my bag. I wasn't being careful. I just wanted to get out of here. Something wasn't right. Like, there was this tingling sensation at the back of my neck. I sort of felt like I was being watched.

As I dropped yet another phone into my sack, I noticed a telephone by the wall. The phone was off the hook. I stopped what I was doing for a moment and stared at it. A window. A cup in the security room. A telephone that looked like it had been recently used, but was in a deserted warehouse. My brain worked slowly towards the conclusion. And then I had it.

God! I'd been such an idiot! How could I not have realised this? The most obvious clues were right there in front of me and still I didn't notice!

I turned and sprinted towards the DVDs section. 'Alicia?' I shouted. I could hear the fear in my own voice. 'Alicia, we have to get out of here! Right now! There's a – '

A hand clamped down on my shoulder, jerking me backwards and lifting my feet right out from under me.

On the floor, I looked up to see a huge, burly figure standing over me. There was a security guard in the building. Oh, shit.

'What the hell do you think you're doing here?!' He exclaimed in a loud angry voice. 'You're under arrest!' I tried to get up, but he put a foot on my chest and shoved me back down again. 'The police are already on the way.' He informed me. 'I called them as soon as I heard the disturbance in the security office.'

My mind seemed to have gone blank. I didn't know what to do. I suppose I could have called for Alicia, but I was sure she was the sort of person who always saved herself instead of others. Besides, there was no point getting her arrested as well.

As these thoughts went through my brain, I registered a sound from outside. The wailing of sirens.

Why did I do this? Why couldn't I have just earned the money legally? But I already knew the answer to that. Alicia. She had influenced me into doing things I didn't want to do. She really had been just bad news from the start.

'You hear that, girl?' The guard asked me. 'They're nearly here, so we'll have to find your little friend before you leave.' He knew about Alicia. He must've heard us talking before. I didn't answer. 'Do you know where she is?' The guard went on. 'Why don't you tell m – '

He cut off abruptly, a glazed, vacant expression on his face. He let out a tiny 'oh' and then slowly, so slowly it was almost as if in slow motion, he fell forward onto the hard concrete floor. I blinked, confused. Then I saw Alicia standing in front of me, wearing an expression remarkably similar to the guard's. I stood up, rubbing my chest. 'Thanks,' I said to her gratefully. 'Now let's go before the police...' I trailed off as a saw the lethal-looking knife clutched tightly in her hand. It was dripping with a bright red substance. I stared at it, and then looked down at the man lying motionless between us. There was a dark red rose of blood spreading slowly across his jacket from the middle of his back.

I took a step back from Alicia, horrified. 'What have you done?' I whispered. She still seemed dazed, in a trance. 'You – You stabbed him! You stabbed an innocent man, Alicia!' Alicia came back to herself. 'I did it for you!' She snapped. 'What else was I supposed to do?'

The sirens were a lot louder now. 'Come on!' Alicia hissed at me. 'Before the police arrive!'

'No! We can't just leave him to die!' I frantically dropped to my knees beside the guard and searched through the blood for the wound.

'Whatever! I'm going! You stay if you want, but I'm not risking my neck for some stranger!' Alicia threw down the bloody knife and raced for the door just as it was slammed open on its hinges and three police officers stepped inside, holding torches high. I could see the red and blue flashing lights of the police cruiser behind them.

'Come out with your hands up!' The woman in front called out. 'You're under arrest!' They actually said that? I thought it only happened in movies.

Alicia instantly burst into tears, hiding her face in her hands. 'It was her!' She shrieked. 'She did it! She made me come here! She said if I didn't then she'd stab me and all my family, just like she stabbed the guard!' Alicia pointed an accusing finger at me where I was still kneeling with the guard. I stared at her.

One of the policemen pulled out a radio and spoke quietly into it, presumably calling paramedics. Recognising that there was nothing I could do, I got up and moved slowly towards that police.

An officer quickly clapped handcuffs onto Alicia's arms, speaking quietly to her. I put my hands up in surrender and as I stepped into the torchlight I saw that they were glinting bright red with blood.

Two police officers moved towards me and instinctively I moved backwards, before stopping myself. Normally if I got into a situation like this then my plan of action would be fight or flight. But if I did that then I would be in even deeper crap then I already was. So I let them come at me. A moment later my arms had been jerked behind me and twisted up on my back. I was completely helpless. I hated that.

Why did I do this? I knew I shouldn't have, I knew it was wrong and I didn't even want to do it. But I did do it.

And it had all gone wrong.

'Come out with your hands up, you are under arrest.' And that's not the most clichéd line in history or anything... sorry, but I've never actually been in one of these situations and don't plan on getting in one, so most of the information for the arrest came from movies lol. And I looked it up on the web and they do actually say that.

Anyways, you like or you don't like? Review please :)