Descent into the Abyss

Chapter 27

Rays of dawn inched across her exposed naked flesh, the thin sheets barely obstructing the best parts of her body. He felt another twitch inside his pants, turning his attention to the window instead. He needed to get her out of the city before sunset, but now with the daylight illuminating the streets, it'd be much more difficult.

"You better get out of here," Rachel whispered, running a finger down his bare back.

He turned, standing and grabbing his shirt as he faced her, pulling the fabric over his head.

"You're coming with me."

It wasn't a suggestion.

"It'll take too long," She replied, hugging her pillow as he grabbed his thick coat, slinging it as he slid his arms in.

"Come on," Blake offered a hand down, but stopped cold.

Her eyes... They were full of sadness and regret, staring back up at him. Her lips made a single word, but he was already turning and running towards the main room of the apartment. Blake turned towards the same windows he looked out the night before, now sliding it up and stepping outside onto the fire escape.

Paranoia? Or good instincts?

Blake had no time to question the feeling he had inside, for as soon as his second boot touched the metal, the front door exploded off the hinges. Ducking, Blake managed to shield his face as the debris was flung into the room, hitting the windows and shattering them.

"GODDAMN IT, KYLE!!!" Blake heard Rachel scream, her footsteps stomping through the bedroom towards them.

"Where is he?" He heard someone ask, their voice barely deeper than an adolescent's.

"What about my door!?" Rachel screamed back.

"Where?"

Silence followed that singular word, while Blake waited with baited breath outside the shattered windows. One step, one twist, metal or glass would give him away to the one inside.

"He's already gone," Rachel told him with a certain unknown proclamation that Blake was blind to see.  "Left before I woke up. Like usual."

"Stop it! You know what kind of monsters are out there! Why? Why keep doing it?!"

Blake could feel the grip of his left boot slipping on the morning dew of the metal grating, but he couldn't stop it. His hand hesitated reaching for his pistol, knowing it would make it harder to scale down the fire escape holding it in hand.

"I can't stay cooped up all the time, Kyle! I have to go and enjoy whatever life I have left."

A deafening Crunch reverberated through the air, Blake swearing silently before commiting to the act. Spinning, he reached for the railing, his body turning as he jumped down half the steps. The world trembled as bricks and glass rained out into the alleyway, several shards falling through the grating down onto the fleeing Blake. He couldn't risk looking up, losing whatever few seconds he had as a headstart.

Down another flight of stairs, his boots nosily pounding on the metal grates, Blake could hear the shouts of the young man stories above him.

"You can run, but you can't hide! I'll find you!" Kyle screamed down at him, his bloody hands gripping the shattered windowsill. "There's nowhere you can hide!"

Blake slid down the ladder at the base of the fire escape, his boots smashing the trash underneath. He lunged forward at the impact of the fall, heat consuming the air behind his head, a sudden rancid odor consuming his senses. His hand moved before his eyes could distinguish a target, gripping the pistol and swinging it around as his vision focused.