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Chapter 2: In The Shadows
Even after many years of having to get medicine for my Nana, my muscles still twitch with adrenaline and nerves. I no longer get dizzy from the rush, but my heart still pounds against my ribs as if trying to escape the danger I am willingly walking into. I had to; we can't afford the medication, so I must use the Annual Purge to my advantage to keep my grandmother alive as long as I possibly can.
After the sun has set enough to cast shadows I take deep breathes and double check my weapons. The knives I keep convenient on my waist and hidden in my boots are really the only form of protection I have. Another deep breath and slowly I open the backdoor. I had to work on it for months to keep it from squeaking.
My eyes instantly scan the streets around me. I'm so used to having to use all of my senses, my ears now seem to move in the direction I hear a noise in. Familiar men dressed in camouflage walk away from me carrying guns over their shoulders. I encounter them every year, but thankfully for the black mask I wear, they have no idea who I am after The Purge.
My breath makes small clouds in the air as I slip down the stairs, making sure to avoid the last noisy step; it almost gave me away one year when a group of shadowy figures was walking past our house. I hide in the shadows casted against the house. The closest pharmacy to us is only a few blocks away, but I usually can't get much from that store, if I can manage to get anything at all.
I tuck my wavy crimson hair into my black hood and put the mask in place before I step out into the street. I avoid the streetlamps that are extremely inconvenient for me considering they are placed within light shot of each other, so where one ends, another begins. Suddenly, a shot in the air stops me in my tracks and I race for the cover of the shadows against a brick building, but I can't stop moving. I continue on my mission.
The shadows are cooler, leaving my skin crawling towards the warmth that has collected beneath my black jacket. I don't remember it ever being this cold during a Purge before. As I make it around a corner, a fight has already broken out in the middle of the street. A group surrounds someone on the ground, beating him. This must have been the source of the gun shot. They yell at him, cursing and calling him vulgar names. I move on, keeping as subtle as possible.
As I keep covered in the shadows, a man's scream has me drop to the ground and covering myself with my sleeves. I peek up over my arms and it's the man that was surrounded, they now have him held up between two people and three others are kicking and punching him. I crawl on the ground until I get to the other side of the building and I scramble to my feet. I peer around the corner back to the ground to make sure that no one has seen me.
To my right, the pharmacy sits between two taller buildings. It is decorated with painted ivy vines and vases with flowers that I always admire every year that I come here. I see it as a little beauty caught up in a blood filled night. I can see that a window is already broken out of it. That is never a good sign, I can't waste time waiting for someone to finish their shopping, especially if they are after the same medicine I am. I bite my lip and step forward until I'm at a sprint towards the pharmacy.
When I get to the broken glass I stop and throw myself against the wall. Quickly I peek in through the broken window. Three men are rummaging through the medicine cabinets and drawers. To my advantage, they are facing away from me, so I have a chance to sneak inside without them noticing me if I'm cautious. Carefully, I step in through the window. The crunching of the glass beneath my boots is muffled by the mumbling of the men who are constantly shuffling through objects. A dark shadow in the far right corner of the room catches my eye and I slither towards it.
"Dammit Scott! I can't find anything!" A low voice complains.
"Shut up and keep looking!" Another snaps.
I curl up into the corner and keep my hand readied at the knife nestled on my waist. I have never had to use it, but I do practice with them often. Of course, I don't want to make the mistake of thinking I will never have to. After a few minutes, my muscles begin to relax and I start to count. I will never stay in one spot longer than it takes me to count to three hundred. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6… 74, 75, 76, 77-
"There ain't nothin' here!" A new voice growls in frustration, throwing something down to the floor, "We're wastin' the night here."
Another loud object is thrown to the floor, "Yeah, let's get the hell out of here!"
I can't help but sigh in relief.
The men push fallen stands out of their path as they leave the store. I notice one man limping, almost bad enough to need help stepping over the window, and I assume he's the one in need for the medicine. When their dark shadows disappear, I crawl through the littered floor and into the medicine storage. I get to my feet and instantly begin to check through the drawers and on the floor where medicine is scattered like marbles.
After almost ten minutes of searching, I finally find two bottles of Amphetamine, a medication that helps Nana keep attentive. I quickly put the medicine in the pocket on my thigh when I hear a crash from the front of the store and almost instantly I can hear the humming of fire. The back of the store illuminates with an orange color. I glance over the counter where a wall of fire has already spread in front of the entrance.
Heat fills my lungs and the mask cradles the warm air against my face. Quickly, I pull it off and begin to search for an exit. Frantically, I push fallen shelves out of the way and open a door into a small bathroom. I curse and turn back to where I came when a flash of the word "Exit" catches my eye. My feet stagger forward and I barely make it around the corner before an explosion goes off from the front of the store.
I burst through the exit and come into an empty alley. I take a deep breath and collect myself. If I hadn't made medicine runs before, I probably would go home right now, but two bottles aren't going to be enough for an entire year, I need at least ten more bottles and the next pharmacy is across town. I put my mask back on and start down through the alley. I stay in the protection of the shadows the entire way to the next pharmacy.
I relax a little when the small pharmacy finally comes into view. It is placed adjacent to a dollar store where it is evident that it has already been ransacked for everything. They both sit at a corner, facing away from each other and a little hot dog stand claims the empty courtyard between them. I take Max there after school sometimes; he always reminds me that he loves the place and he refuses to eat hotdogs anywhere else.
I creep towards the pharmacy while still managing to stay in the shadow of a stretch of buildings. My steps are slow and careful as I always keep an eye all around me. I constantly have to move my head side to side from the mask only allowing me to see what is directly ahead of me, something I will have to work on when I get back.
When I reach the pharmacy doors, I peer through the glass to make sure that no one had decided to take a less obvious entrance into the store and when no shadows cross my view, I search for a near, heavy object. As my eyes still scan through the streets, I find a rock and quickly throw it in through the glass. I jump through as the glass is still falling like rain. I briskly search the store for any hidden visitors.
I get to back and instantly begin searching. To my surprise, everything looks full, restocked. I grab handfuls of Vicodin and Keppra, (used to stop seizures) and I grab enough Amphetamine for a year and a couple months. I'm about to leave when I see a note posted on the inside of the door. I finish securing my pockets and pull the note off the door that reads,
"Take what you need and May God be with you all."
They restocked the store on purpose.
A smile manages to cross my face.
