Renegade

Chapter 1

New York City

1990

     Ragged breathing interrupted the stillness of the night as two lone boys ran through the deserted back-streets of New York City. They were alone, with no parents and nothing but each other. From an early age they had been abandoned, left to starve and shiver in the cruel world.

     "This way!" the oldest of them whispered, leading his younger brother into the safety of a shadow.

     Hunger tore at their stomachs as they devoured the scraps of food they had stolen. They were being pursued so they had to eat quickly and as noiselessly as possible.

     "Are they gone?" the youngest whispered through a mouth-full of bread crumbs.

     The oldest swallowed, and gasped for breath, while quietly looking around the edge of the cracked building. He could see the towering skyscrapers, glittering with lights like Christmas trees. The oldest was often intimidated by the buildings and their height but at that current moment he had other worries.

     "I think they're-" he started, but stopped when he heard shuffling from further up the street.

     "Ben?" the youngest asked. "Is it safe?"

     "Ssshhh!" Ben whispered, shoving his brother back behind him. "Be quiet!"

     Voices started to become audible from up the streets and they grew in clarity as their talkers got nearer. They seemed to be angry, irritated, and some of them were shouting obscenities at the boys.

     "Ben," the youngest began to sob, "I'm scared..."

     Ben looked at his younger brother's face. It was round an innocent, the fine characteristics of an 8-year-old. His brother's face was smudged with dirt, and bright-blue eyes eagerly stared through the mask. Ben put a hand on his brother's messy blonde hair.

     "It'll be all right Francis," Ben consoled. "Everything's going to be fine..."

     "Look here!" a voice shouted. "Bread crumbs!"

     "Ha!" a voice cackled. "Come out wherever you are!"

     "Little freaks!" another taunted. "We'll show what happens to trash like you who steal food!"

     Ben huddled against the wall, his heart pounding and his body shaking with fear. He clenched his jaw shut to keep his teeth from chattering and squeezed his eyes closed. There was a moment of silence, with the only sound to him being the quiet breathing of Francis.

     "Hello!" a voice cackled.

     Ben felt his body grabbed and pulled backward. He fell, sprawled on the ground, at the foot of a gangster. Ben shakily looked up at the towering figure and the snaking tattoos that encircled his face.

     "Little freak!" the man taunted, swinging out at Ben.

     Ben dodged and rolled to the side. He frantically looked around for his brother but his sibling was nowhere to be found.