Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Fiction Group 3 - 2017 | Page 132

Suddenly, a beam of bright light sliced through the darkness. She panicked and hid behind some old boxes. The light got brighter and brighter while footsteps became nearer and nearer. Scarlett held her breath, not trusting herself to keep quiet. Her heart thumped and thumped. “I swore I saw a person hide behind these boxes,” a gruffly voice echoed in the empty alley. Scarlett’s heart sank. There was no way she was not going to be found. The owner of the voice kicked the boxes around her as her heartbeat increased rapidly. The beam of light jumped from one spot to another, as her heartbeat continued to race on. Then, the light shone directly onto her. “Aha! Found you. Hands up or I’ll shoot!” the voice yelled. Scarlett stood up, knowing she was caught. She turned around and faced the owner of the voice. She could faintly see that he was a bulky man with a scruffy beard and a bald head. He was wearing black from head to toe and on his face was a menacing glare. Beside him stood a slightly taller and slimmer man who bore a similar glare. He was also wearing black from head to toes. “What are you doing here at night?” the taller man demanded. Scarlett gulped and took a deep breath. She froze, thinking of an answer. “I... I… I’m a nurse at the hospital and I just finished my work,” she replied. “Why did you not use the main roads?” the man continued to question her. “This road is...is...closer to my home.” “Are you sure? This alley is surely not close to anywhere.” “I’m sure... It’s along…” “She’s just a young girl, Bob. I don’t think she means any harm. I bet she can’t even kill a fly!” the bulky man snorted “Women these days are so useless. They just rely on us, right girl? Let’s go, man!” The two men marched off further into the darkness. Scarlett stood rooted to her spot for a few seconds, before breathing a sigh of relief. “That was so close...I can’t believe that they thought I’m so useless.” she muttered angrily. After walking for what felt like ages, Scarlett finally came to a halt. She walked up to a shabby old building and knocked on the door five times. The door creaked open to reveal a young girl whose cheeks were sunken. Tear stains ran down her cheeks. An even younger boy peeped out behind her with a look of fear until he realised who she was.