Converse clad feet pounded the sidewalk in a desperate attempt at safety.
Before skidding around the corner, Kay risked a glance over her shoulder. The man in the leather jacket was closer than ever.
Turning back around, her mind thudded as it tried valiantly to come up with a plan. Eventually it gave up and let her body take control. Running completely on impulse, Kay ducked into the first alley she came to after rounding the next corner. Her calf cramped up at the sudden lack of exertion.
"Shit…." She muttered to herself as she stretched the cramp out. Mentally she cursed herself for not running more in P.E. Kay eased herself down around the side of a dumpster. Her heart pounded and she squeezed her eyes shut, willing the man to miss her, keep going. Unwieldy, boot clad feet stomped past and could be heard hastening down the street.
Relaxing for the first time after fifteen minutes of sprinting, Kay rested her head against the side of the dumpster.
After resting for a few minutes, Kay decided that Leather Jacket wasn't coming back any time soon. She crept up to the edge of the alley. A quick scan of her surroundings confirmed her hunch that Leather Jacket wasn't around. Once again she took off running.
Half and hour ago she had been trying clothes on in her room and thinking about school tomorrow and then poof! She was being kidnapped. Joy...
After being dragged down the fire escape with a hand tight around her mouth, Kay had stomped on Leather Jacket's toes and taken off running. The thin little man she recognized from the newspaper had ordered Leather Jacket to chase after her, even though he had work boots on.
She knew she knew the little guy's name; she just couldn't quite place him. Whoever he was, now she was running around the streets of Gotham (which are not the safest even during the day) from a crazy mob guy to nowhere in particular.
Common sense stared to prevail once more over the mass of adrenaline in her system. Kay decided that calling the police sounded like a good idea right about now. She jogged up the steps to the nearest house and started banging on the door. Never mind that it was quarter to midnight at night and sensible, working people would be in bed. She was being chased by the mob for reasons unbeknownst to her.
Bending over with her hands on her knees Kay gasped for breath. A few seconds later the door was cracked half way open and a disheveled man who looked like he hadn't slept in weeks asked tersely, "What?"
Straightening up Kay heaved: "I'm … being chased… by some crazy mob guy… I don't know… why. May I use your… phone... to call the police?"
The man stared at her with piercing blue eyes for a moment. Kay wondered for a split second if she should go to another house before he blinked and smiled tightly.
"Of course you can. Step right in." He opened the door wider to allow Kay admission to the house.
Turning around, Kay said, "Thank you so bleeggch!" as she was met with a face-full of white gas and sense of impending doom.
Looking down at her feet she saw hundreds and hundreds of spiders. They started up her legs and falling from above. Immobilized in horror, Kay looked from the spiders to the man with the blue eyes and whimpered, "Help me. They're everywhere."
She saw him give a small, indifferent nod before passing out from fear and exhaustion.
A sharp stinging sensation drove Kay's mind back into consciousness. As she drifted back into harsh reality she realized that the stinging was in her cheek, and the cause was a hand. Muttering she said, "Stop. Mmnstop id. Tha' hurts. Stop."
The blurred figure the offending hand belonged to stood up and walked out of Kay's line of vision. As her vision cleared and sharpened the figure walked back in front of her, carrying a chair. Lifting her head, Kay could see that the blurred person was the man who had answered the door.
"'Sup asshole?" Kay slurred from her still exhausted state.
"How do you feel?" the man's voice was cold, scientific.
"Like shit." Kay gave him the best glare she could muster.
He raised an eyebrow, but seemed unperturbed. "Ah. Lucid I see... Tell me, are you still hallucinating?"
Kay blinked the sleep away from her eyes before answering. "Hallucinating? No. Are you?" She pretended to be concerned.
A small sigh escaped the man's lips. Distantly, almost as if he were just thinking aloud he said,
"I suppose I should introduce myself. I'm Doctor Jonathan Crane."
Maybe the gas Crane had used on her still had her drugged, or maybe she was just pissed off at being kidnapped twice in one night, but Kay had a sudden resolve to do everything she could to annoy this bastard until something happened.
She didn't know, nor did she care, what would happen, so long as something did. "Hi. I'm Kay Chapman. So Doctor Crane, do you usually kidnap people who ask to use your phone? Do you keep them in your basement until they starve? Hmmm? What's your M.O.?"
Crane just looked at her, keeping complete composure for this. Kay lifted her eyebrow in confusion. It definitely would have worked on her mother, or any of her teachers. So she kept at it: "I know! We could play twenty questions! I'll go first. Let's see… are you a mineral? Vegetable? Psychopath?"
Calmly, Crane lifted his arm and released the toxin from a canister strapped to his wrist, scooting his chair back. Coughing, Kay tried to lift her hands to her face and discovered that they were tied to the chair. Lovely. She felt fear tighten in her chest as she felt the familiar tickle of the spiders' legs, but she could also feel determination. So she did something Crane had never seen his victims do before.
She closed her eyes and pretended that this wasn't happening.
She pretended that she didn't feel the spiders that were swarming at her feet, crawling up her body and down her shirt. The spidery feeling enveloped her body and left her shivering uncontrollably. Still she would not open her eyes and see something much more horrible than the feeling.
Frustrated at the lack of terror, Crane leaned close to her and growled, "Open your eyes."
Stubbornly Kay growled back, "Not a chance in hell asshole." Soon after this another gas was sprayed at her. Slowly the tension left her body and the spider sensations faded away.
"Open. Your. Eyes." Crane's voice had the sound of ice and the feel of an inferno. Kay supposed that this was the reaction she had been looking for. It was dangerous, but it felt good.
"Why should I? So far having my eyes open has been a spectacularly bad idea. Why would that change now?"
In response a hand slammed into her jaw, nearly tipping her chair over.
Maybe I went a bit to far that time. Kay thought.
Grudgingly, she opened her eyes and slowly looked up at Crane. He was standing and clenching his fists. An odd sneer was splayed gruesomely across his features, contorting his previous calmness. Shaking, an internal battle danced across his eyes.
All of a sudden all expression left his face and it was as if nothing had happened. Crane once again looked like the heartless bastard he had been so far. Turning his detached blue eyes towards Kay he asked, methodical once again, "How old are you?"
"Under-aged. So it doesn't matter if I give my consent, it's still statutory rape." Even as she said this Kay knew that it was a stupid thing to say and that she was probably going to get herself killed.
Well, to late now. At least it's more interesting that home. Kay thought bitterly.
May as well go with it.
So how'd you like it? Was Crane's introduction good enough? Please review! Love to all. -Archaic