Not a killer

Chapter 3

I crouched there, petrified for a few seconds. My mind just seemed to explode. I had just witnessed a murder. One stranger killing another. Unbelievable. My mind started to race, and I couldn't think straight. The world around me started to move and go all fuzzy. But then a sudden thought came into my head: No, I was not going to faint, especially with a killer only meters away. I had to get away, and fast.

With a sudden leap of faith, I got up and ran for my life. But then I cursed myself for being so stupid. I had got up too loudly. The stranger had definitely heard me. But by now it was too late anyway, so I just kept running.

Soon enough, I heard a shout behind me.

"Hey!" shouted the stranger, but I ignored him, now running in a  sort of zig-zag pattern, hoping that his chances of firing and hitting me would be slimmer.

Down the street I sped, my speed increasing greatly. Goodness, I didn't know my thin legs could run that fast. I was nearly at the end of the street when I started to feel quite quite puzzled, because I hadn't heard any gunshots yet. My question was soon answered when a few seconds later, I looked back and saw the stranger pursuing me, starting to catch up. I screamed and kept on going.

"Stop!" shouted the man.

"No!" I responded back "You're a killer!"

"Please! You don't understand"

"Oh, I understand perfectly fine, thank you very much. What my two eyes saw were you shooting an innocent old man!"

"Innocent? Oh, that man is anything but innocent, kid. He's murdered many people!"

"What? Another killer? How many of you assassins are there?"

"Can't tell you that, kid. Just stop running and hear me out! I will not kill you!"

"Never!" I said as I turned round a corner and continued running down another dark, abandoned street. It was so frustrating how I still couldn't see anyone in sight. I really had gone quite a distance away from the park earlier.

Through the deserted neighborhood we sped, running over glass, dodging through half-built buildings and me trying to find my way out of there. I had to admit, by now I was feeling completely lost, and I didn't know where to go. I must have taken several wrong turns on my way to the park, because I didn't recognize this place at all. There was also another problem: My legs were killing me. I had barely any energy left, and I was sure to fall to the ground at any moment. I started to cry silently, in frustration. This was so unfair. I hadn't even done anything wrong, unless you count following strangers as a crime!

A couple of minutes later came the fatal moment. The stone on the ground just seemed to come out of nowhere. There I was, running for my life when all of a sudden, the world around me started to turn, and my head was slammed onto the concrete ground. Only seconds later, the killer was on top of me. I twisted and turned and struggled to get free, but he was strong, and he pinned me down the ground.

"Aah! Mercy! I'm innocent!" I said, trying to push him off to one side.

"Just hold still!" he shouted "I won't hurt you"

"Pff! Says the man who commited murder a few minutes ago!"

"Look! I am giving you a chance here" he said, and then, for the second time that evening, he took out his back pistol once more "So shut up and listen!"

I didn't respond. I just stared at the weapon, practically hypnotized. My face had probably gone terribly pale, and my lower lip hadn't stopped trembling since the murder.

"I will let you go" he said slowly "But with only one request: You don't tell the police what happened tonight. Don't tell anyone, for that matter. Just pretend it never happened. Me, the gun, the chase,... it was only a dream. Do I make myself clear?"

I nodded extremely slowly, not believing my luck. He was going to let me go! This evening had turned out a lot better than I expected. I was about to get up and leave when the man spoke once more.

"Wait" he said "If you even speak one word about this to anyone except me, I will eventually hear about it. And then, there will be extreme consequences." With this last sentence, he pointed a finger towards his gun. "Do you understand?"

"Yes" I said nerviously, quite frightened.

"Good" Suddenly, a wide smile spread across his face "Now go, before I change my mind"

I didn't need told twice. I got up from the ground and hurried off into the distance, not looking back. I eventually found my way back to the park, and from there, I continued running all the way to my house, only a few blocks away.

A stranger, a murder and a killer chase. Goodness, what a weird afternoon it had been. Very weird indeed.