Fools of us All - Chapter 22

The kid and I should have moved at some point, but instead we continued to stand and stare. I think we were both too surprised to even think. He was young, no more than a teenager. His hair was getting long and greasy, and a smattering of acne dotted his cheeks. His clothes were old and well worn, and I could see a toe sticking out of his sneakers. Guarded eyes looked out from under a broad forehead. His words finally broke the spell. “Oh hell no,” he breathed. Quick as a flash he turned around and bolted.

I was only a step behind, my fingers grazing the edge of his the hood on his tattered sweater. Our footsteps echoed through the room and we soon left the building, running through the rain that had begun to fall. I gritted my teeth in frustration as we splashed through a puddle, soaking my shoes. There was no way he was getting away now.

He skidded around a corner, disappearing from sight for a second. I rounded the same corner and fell over myself trying to avoid a collision with a large man standing with his arms crossed. I jumped to my feet, stammering an apology as I tried to get around him to continue after my quarry.

A large hand on my chest brought me up short. It was then that I noticed my young adversary was standing behind the behemoth, his arms crossed, a smug smile on his face. I stepped back a pace, looking up at the large man before me. “I suppose you two are pals, huh.”

“You want him, you have to go through me.” He flexed, his arms bulging out from his shirt.

I raised my hand in a placating gesture. “I don’t want to fight,” I said. “I just want to talk. He was in a building that had been blown up, a building very special to a woman I am friends with. I want to know if he knows anything, that’s all.” I looked past the large man at the kid I had been chasing, a pleading look on my face. Which was probably why I did not see the punch coming.

I was caught full on the face by a large, beefy fist, causing me to fly back, skidding to a halt in a pile of garbage. I rose to my feet, grimacing with pain. I could feel the bruise forming. “This is going to be difficult, isn’t it.”

The large man smiled and nodded.

For the next few minutes, I learned the finer art of being a punching bag. Making it worse was seeing the young man leaning against a wall, enjoying my thrashing. Finally I found myself lying, my face pressed hard into the concrete under a large boot. The edges of my vision began to turn black.

This is ridiculous I thought. I just wanted to talk. Suddenly, the pressure on my head lessened slightly. With a burst of energy I pushed his foot off and rolled aside. Rising to my feet, I swayed slightly. Mocking laughter rang in my ears. “You are less than useless,” he said derisively. Slowly he came towards me, casually reaching out to grab me in a bone crushing bear hug.

Waiting until the last second, I deftly stepped aside, kicking at his ankle and pushing his back at the same moment. Surprised, he stumbled forward, smacking his head into a wall. With a roar of pain, he whirled around, holding his head. Before he could react, I leapt forward, running into him at full speed, knocking his head against the wall with a dull thud. He slid senselessly to the ground.

Not pausing to see if he was out of the fight, I whirled around and grabbed the young punk, who’s smug look had faded. Twisting his arm behind him, I pushed him in the direction of Caz’s hideout, stepping over his fallen buddy as we walked. I had no idea what was going on, but this guy might have some answers. And if he didn’t, then maybe I could sit on him for a while for the pain he had caused me tonight.