Adri

Chapter One

"It's on the house," said Cari, after Adan ordered his drink. It had been years since they had their little friend group, she was never too close to them, but she was friends with Cara. At least, she used too.

"Thanks," Adan replied, smiling awkwardly. What were the odds, running into her again? Especially halfway across the country...

Cari was the bartender, content with her place in the world. She had a thing for gossip and talking, she was just good with people. She sat down the glass she was scrubbing and poured a shot of whiskey for Adan.  He drank it, seemed used to it. With a sigh, he buried his head in his hands.

"What's got you down?" she asked, handing a glass of beer to another customer.

"It's...personal," he insisted, clearly not wanting to discuss it, "where've you been all these years?"

"Oh you know, trying to find my place, fall in love, get a job. Still a lost soul, but this bar's become my home...", she paused in thought. "What about you?"

"Settled down, working for a company, and on a business trip."

Cari walked around the counter, flipped the sign on the door, and started wiping the tables.

"Once this place is empty, walk down to the park with me, we can catch up." she offered. Clearly, the late hour didn't bother her.

Adan stretched, "Sure".

He sat and watched people start to leave, as they realized there were no more drinks to be had. Cari leaned on the counter and massaged her temples, before putting Adan's glass away. They walked through the door together, becoming encompassed by the darkness. The sky above was a gloomy shade of gray, threatening rain.

As they walked down the sidewalk, Cari asked him about his life. She said she never really imagined him sitting in a cubical all day, answering phones and sorting papers. The more she asked, the more he made up. It was like weaving a new identity for himself, but he was used to it, it was part of his job. Shadows moved in the alleyway next to them, Adan put his arm in front of Cari to get her attention. There were voices, hushed and low in tone. He cursed himself when his hand went instinctively to his hip, brushing his gun with his fingers.

"What is it?" Cari asked, tilting her head to one side as she looked at him.

"I saw something, do you have a knife?"

"Why would I have a knife?"

Adan shook his head, "You walk these streets unprotected?"

"No" she lied.

Adan turned around, they would be better going the other way. Something here gave him an odd feeling. They had made it a few feet before he noticed the footsteps that echoed behind them. They were being followed. He grabbed her hand, ready to pull her aside in case shots were fired. She gave protest but was quickly silenced by two hard squeezes of her hand.

"What is it?" she whispered, holding his hand tighter, now frightened.

"Just stay close to me," he told her, "and you'll be okay."

Cari focused on placing one foot in front of the other, she didn't know what was wrong, and she would very much like to know. She was about to ask him again but he started pulling her across the road. She looked and there were two people who were standing where they had crossed from. One was walking towards them and the other must have been following them.

Adan started walking faster and then ducked into an alley when the pair crossed the road. They started weaving through boxes, trash cans, and homeless people. A small cat meowed at them from the ground. Cari could hear thunder echo in the distance, coughing and mumbled talking came from the bodies that littered the walls. It was a dismal scene.

"Where are we going?" Cari asked him.

Adan slowed his pace and let go of her hand, "You're going to have to come with me now."

She looked disconcerted, a frown spreading across her lips, "Why?"

"Because now they're coming for you too."

End of chapter one

A dismal scene