Poisons Of Fear

Chapter 1

The weekend went on just as Haley had hoped.  She had been able to lock herself in her room, work on homework, and even been able to climb on the old fire escape to buy a decent lunch one day.  

However, now it was Monday.  There was school for the first eight hours, then dance for the next three.  She did not mind school.  It was a way for her to get out of the house and interact with other students and teachers.  She didn't have any close friends she could talk to, but it didn't bother her.  With dance after school, and trying to figure things out at home, she really didn't have time for friends.  

Haley went about her day like she always did; Food Science class, Advanced Geometry, Beginners French, Gym, Advanced Biology, lunch, Advanced English, Geography, and art.   Art was by far her favorite class.  

Art was a class with no real structure.  She could draw or paint whatever she wanted to.  There was always an art walkthrough for the school at the end of the year, and Haley's teacher, Mr. Starcher, was already telling her which ones she should put up for display.  Haley's most recent obsession with art was birds in cages.  She had drawn one on a worksheet in one of her other classes and had been drawing similar things for the past few weeks.  

However, after class Haley was ready for the day to be done.  She was exhausted and her stomach was rumbling so loud she felt like everyone in the hallway could hear it.  But, before she was able to leave the art room Mr. Starcher stopped her.  "Haley, can you hang back a second?" 

Haley nodded as she waited for everyone to leave before walking up to her teacher.  "Yes sir?" 

"I just wanted to make sure you are okay.  You didn't seem to be yourself today," He said leaning on his desk.  

Haley nodded.  "Yes sir.  I'm okay.  There's just a lot going on in my life right now with school, dance, and..."

"And family stuff?" He asked raising his eyebrows.  

Haley nodded again.  "Yes sir." 

"Haley, is something going on at home?  Do we need to talk to someone?" Mr. Starcher asked quietly.  "I'm asking because I'm worried.  I'm not supposed to really say this but you do show many the signs of having a lot of trouble at home."  

Haley gulped as she looked at him.  "I'm not being abused if that's what you are asking."  

Mr. Starcher shook his head.  "Abuse happens in many different forms, Haley." 

"None of it is happening to me," Haley said sharply.  "My parents just have a lot going on right now, but nothing bad is happening."

Mr. Starcher sighed as he nodded at her.  "Okay.  If you say nothing is happening, I'll believe you.  But, if I have reason to believe you are not telling the truth, I will report it.  That's not a threat, Haley.  That's a promise." 

Haley gulped as she nodded.  She didn't say anything else as she turned to walk out of the classroom and down the hall.  

**********

Haley's afternoon was typical.  She had ridden her bicycle to dance, worked on homework until it was time for her classes to start, and managed to afford a granola bar out of the vending machine while she waited.  

After dance practice, Haley was getting ready for the bike ride home.  She had put on her layers, and secured her belongings carefully in her backpack.  When she walked out of the dance studio, she was shocked to see there were small flurries falling from the cloudy, dark sky.  

Haley loved the snow, but that did mean it was getting colder, and traveling by bike and foot would be a lot harder.  But, she couldn't think about that now.  She had to get home before she got too cold, after all, she wasn't exactly dressed for this specific weather.  

As Haley turned the corner of the studio, she saw her bike right where she left it.  When she pulled it back, however, she felt it was much heavier and harder to push.  She held her breath as she looked down and saw that her front tire was almost entirely flat.  Haley rolled her eyes.  "Well, that's just great," She muttered to herself.  

There was no way she would be able to ride her bike home now without causing further damage.  All she could do was push it home.  So that's what she did.  

Haley had made it about three-quarters of the way without any incident before she ran into trouble.  That trouble just so happened to be the Purple Dragons.  

The Purple Dragons were the most dangerous street gang in Haley's neighborhood.  They seemed to control most of the crime in the area.  From illegal drugs, weapons, dog fights, street fights, robberies, and anything else, they were probably involved in one way or another.   No one messed with them, and you could tell a person was part of the gang because they all had a purple dragon tattoo visible on their body.

Haley was walking past an alley with her bike handles pushing in front of her when she saw two guys walk out in front of her.  They were much taller and bigger than her.  What shocked Haley was that they didn't look much older than her.  They looked like teenagers, maybe older teenagers, but still teenagers.  In fact, she thought she recognized one of them from school, though she couldn't be sure.  One had a purple dragon tattoo on his neck and the side of his head with the mouth opening up around his eye.   

"Well well well.  What do we have here?"  The other one said to his buddy.  

The one with the face tattoo smirked.  "Looks like a little girly with her bag full of things we could use,"  His voice sent chills down Haley's spine as he spoke. "So just hand us the backpack, and no one gets hurt.  Hand the bike over while you're at it, babe."

Haley froze.  She couldn't speak.  She started to back up before she realized two more guys had appeared behind her, boxing her in.  She had two options; run and leave her bike behind or just give in.  Without much thought, Haley chose to run.  

She tried to push the bike towards the guys in front of her as a distraction and leave, but the guy behind her grabbed her by the backpack handle.  He was so strong he basically threw Haley into the alleyway.  She spun as her arms hit the asphalt, breaking her fall a little bit.  But before she could even stand, she was pulled to her feet and pinned to a building wall but two of them.  

"Trying to run wasn't smart, babe," The guy with the face tattoo said as he leaned in close to her.  "Shoulda just gave us the stuff when you had the chance." 

Haley was scared, but out of instinct, she headbutted the guy right in the nose.  It hurt Haley, but not as much as it hurt the other guy.  He stumbled back, gripping his nose with his hand, and screaming a list of curses.  Blood was pouring from his nose and into his mouth when he removed his hand.  "You bitch!" He screamed as he swung a punch into Haley's stomach.  

She gasped for air because of the punch but felt like no air came to her.  Tears came to her eyes as she struggled to stand.  Before she could think of what to do, another punch came.  This time the guys holding her to the wall let go, letting her fall to the ground.  

Kick after kick followed after.  It took a few before Haley couldn't tell the pain of a new kick from an old one.  It was all just overwhelming pain.  Haley couldn't move or defend herself.  All she could do was close her eyes and curl deeper into a ball on the floor.  

But, something did happen.  She heard the purple dragons screaming.  There were the sounds of metal on metal, and other objects hitting things.  Finally, there was the sound of the purple dragons calling to their buddies to run.  There was no more kicking, no punches, nothing except for the pain Haley was still feeling.  

"Are you okay?"  A voice said.  It was a new voice this time.  It seemed concerned and gentle.  Not like the man of someone who just took out four members of the toughest gang in the neighborhood.  

Haley gulped as she opened her eyes slowly.  She was shocked to see not one man, but four.  And, they weren't men.  They looked like four giant turtles.  Haley wanted to scream, but the only thing that came from her mouth was a cough with drops of blood.  

She struggled as she tried to pull herself away from the creatures and stand.  As soon as she was able to get her feet under her, she was unable to move all over again.  The world started spinning, her vision faded to black, and her entire body felt to heavy to hold up.  The last thing she remembered was a voice screaming to catch her.