When Axel Marks opened his eyes a realization hit him so hard that he nearly lost his breath; he'd been caught, again. The walls of the wooden carriage and the ache in his head all pointed to that conclusion. He sighed, leaned his head against the wall and let the rhythmic sound of hooves clip-clopping lull him into a state of nostalgia. His mind took him back seven years to the streets. It was Halloween Night and two weeks before he and his friend Toby had run from the boy's home. Three days later, after the desperate search for the two runaways, everyone gave up on Toby Collins and Axel Marks; Axel caused trouble, and Toby appeared to be a lost cause. The next day they met up with a friend from school; Sterling Daniels. He lived nice and snug at home but mostly hung out on his own. Sterling teamed up with Toby and Axel and for two weeks the boys spent their time on the streets stealing food and causing all sorts of trouble. But Halloween Night changed their lives forever. The sound of Toby's voice echoed in Axle's head as he sat with his eyes shut in the carriage. It still sounded small, timid and almost frightened. He remembered the words so clearly and distinctly that it sounded as if twelve-year-old Toby sat next to him in the cart. He felt biting wind cut into his face and he heard Toby speak: "I hate Halloween." "Awe you're such a wimp Toby," Axel teased. "Yeah, don't be such a baby Collins," Sterling's cocky voiced echoed in the alley. "Are you afraid the Boogie Man's gonna get you? Huh? You scared?" For a moment Axel saw Toby's face so clearly that he nearly jerked up in surprise. His head cocked to one side and for a moment he looked like a little schnauzer puppy. His uncanny green eyes stared at the ground for a moment and the moved up to his friends. He said nothing, but he didn't have to, they knew his answer, and knew it was best to drop it. Axel changed the subject. "Let's go do something, I'm gettin' cold sittin' here." "Sure, but what?" Toby asked. "I don't know, let's just start walking and maybe we'll find it," Axel said. "On Halloween Night?" Sterling asked. "I'm sure it's real safe for three kids like us wondering the streets of New York alone, at night...Halloween Night for that matter. Real bright man." Axel cocked an eyebrow. "Now look who's scared." "Hey man, I'm not scared," Sterling said, his eyes changing colors as they always did. "I'm just not dumb." Toby laughed. "He's scared." In the end, Axel convinced Sterling to walk to a local neighborhood and steal candy from little kids. On the way there the wind howled and the moon cast eerie shadows all around, causing the streets of New York to look like a scene from an old horror film. Every once in a while Axel thought he heard Toby shiver but he could never be sure. Toby's own shadow made him wet his pants. When they were about a block from the neighborhood Sterling started looking over his shoulder. Halfway down the street, lights splashed across the pavement; a large black van creped around the corner; like a wolf on the prowl. Axel and Toby took no notice of it but Sterling continued glancing back as it neared them. As it drew up right behind them he turned and whispered to his two friends, "Run in opposite directions as fast as you can-that car's bad news." Toby took the warning almost before the words had left Sterling's mouth and he disappeared around a corner. Sterling started back the way he came when he realized that Axel was still walking towards the neighborhood. "Axel run!" He yelled. "I'm not joking!" "Why should I run?" He asked. But as the words escaped his lips the van slowed to a halt and the back door slid open. A man, the size Axel imagined Goliath must have been, stepped out onto the pavement. His face almost glowed in the ghostly moonlight and his eyes looked like two endless black holes. For a moment Axel felt the flame of rebellion spark inside of him and paused to face the monster-but suddenly, as the giant hand reached down to grab him, he found himself running. He jumped on the hood of the car and used the momentum to propel himself off towards town. It seemed like hours that he ran. His legs grew numb from the cold, the wind cut his lungs with shards of ice, and his eyes burned. But he never stopped; when he slowed down the sound of pounding feet grew loud behind him and he sped up. /Why is this happening? / He wondered. /Why do they want to...what do they want to do? / Axel turned a corner and, just like in horror movies, the ghostly man stood in his way. He saw him but could not stop his speed. Running into him was like running into a brick wall, only harder. The last thing he saw before the all-consuming darkness took him was the man leaning over him with something in his hand.