Lady in the Alley

by kyarajack

"Um... There's a lady in an alley." He was whispering, even though no one else was home. His mom was out, working the late shift, but it didn't seem right to talk about such things at a normal volume. Everyone knew you whispered in libraries and churches. And at funerals. "I think... I think she's dead," he said softly.

15. Chapter 15

[Saturday, February 13, 21:00]

Juliana looked up at the sky once she left the subway. The clouds were almost black, promising a deluge once they broke. The woman wiggled her toes inside her bright orange rain boots, smiling. She absolutely loathed wet stocks. But tonight she wouldn't have to worry. She set off for home, using the same route she always did. She knew the Bronx was not a savoury place, but if she walked fast and kept her head down, she didn't get bothered. It probably helped that she was so tall. She strode past the dark windows of Milly's Corner, it closed early on Saturdays, and turned down the alley.

A flash of lightning lit the night and what was that? She paused, peering at the alley wall as the thunder rolled overhead. That paint hadn't been there yesterday. The next bolt of lightning made it bright enough to see, but before she could make sense of the graffiti, someone came up behind her and punched her in the back.

Once. Twice.

Juliana stumbled forward, disoriented. Confused. The breath had been knocked out of her lungs. As she gasped for air and tried to turn around, the person pushed her. Hard. Her hands and knees stung where they met the pavement. Another punch to her back. And this time accompanied by a searing pain. More pain flared where they had hit her the first two times, so intense that her arms gave out. She tried to turn her head, to get any sense of what had just happened, when a hand clamped down on her skull, pressing her cheek against the asphalt. A short blade appeared inches in front of her nose, coated in dark red. Blood? Hers? What-?

"Go back where you came from, you filthy immigrant," he growled, his breath hot on her ear. His voice dripped with disgust and hatred.

Juliana lay there, frozen. Heart pounding. Waiting for a fourth and final blow. She let her eyes close. The white-hot pain in her back was making it hard to keep them open anyway. She still hadn't caught her breath but was too scared to try, only drawing in reedy gasps when her body demanded it. Lighting. The bright flash visible through her eyelids. Thunder. The deep rumble in her ears. The sky opened. The rain hammered down, threatening to soak everything in seconds.

With one last shove of her face into the ground, he left, his splashing footsteps melding with the raindrops before the next strike of lightning.

She began to feel faint, the patter of the rain seeming further and further away as the cold crept deeper and deeper into her body. Juliana said a silent prayer as she slipped into darkness.