Just wanted to say thank you for taking the time to read my story so far, it will be a slow upload rate as I want to make sure I am happy with the chapters I put out. If you have any questions or suggestions, please feel free to send them through. If you also feel like leaving a review or follow along that would be amazing, but no pressure.
Anyway, I thought I would put this note in as this chapter does contain some violence that could upset some people, and I apologise if it has done this. These scenes are going to be very rare in my story, and you won't really see them going forward, there may be references but it won't go into the level of detail I have in this chapter.
I hope you enjoy the chapter.
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Sarah was walking home from work after being out all night, it was a shitty job and one that someone had to do. It was unfortunate that she had no other choice after following her dream and completing her contemporary art degree. Who knew that she would struggle to find work after making the move to New York, full of hopes and dreams of striking it rich in the big city.
Certainly not her and she certainly didn't think she would be stuck in a night shift job at the local convenience store. But hey it was relatively close to her apartment, and the owner had been pretty supportive during her stint so far. She had managed to get a few advances on her pay after finding out how much the deposit was.
His reasoning was that he knew what it was like to start over fresh and in a new and unfamiliar place, especially with next to no support. Sarah's family weren't poor, but she had managed to get through college on various scholarships and grants. She was called a prodigy and extremely gifted for her age. This was another reason behind her big move, thinking it made her special and she would succeed where others couldn't.
Who knew that upon arriving and going through interview after interview, she would realise that the prodigy moniker would be a dime a dozen in the city. It was only finding this store and getting to know the owner as she went through the last of her money buying some instant noodles, that she got the helping hand she desperately needed.
He knew the owner of the apartment where she currently lived and was able to get a slightly cheaper rent. Cheap for New York that is, which was still so expensive she wouldn't have been able to afford it long term, regardless of how much money she had been able to save prior to arriving.
Yet he helped again by offering her a job and it was honest to God the lifeline she needed at this stage. Being close to work and having a job that gave her plenty of time during the day to do whatever she wanted was a godsend. Not that she had much disposable income to work with but hey it was something.
In all honesty he was pretty proactive in regards to security for the shop, he had security screens around the teller for late night service and high-tech Stark security cameras with automatic upload to prevent tampering. On paper it seemed like a perfectly acceptable job, that would cover all that she needed, her exorbitant rent for the tiny shoebox she lived in and basic groceries.
Every now and then she would have some extra to splurge on something nice, but that also took over a month to build up. It was the perfect stopgap until she could find something tied to her qualifications. The job didn't have much risk and any potential dangers were generally discouraged due to the shops reputation and countermeasures to prevent and catch those responsible.
It seemed the owner had closer than normal ties to the police, due to a close relative being high up in the local precinct. This discouraged a lot of the seedier types that loitered around the 24/7 convenience stores late at night. That was another deciding factor behind her decision to work the job, though earlier on in her shift she had noticed a particular individual.
He had been staring intently at the store and always managed to walk past the door as someone entered or exited. At the start she didn't notice it clearly but after the 5th or 6th time she started paying attention to the door when she noticed people using it.
It was the same guy and he kept glancing towards the counter and herself but never lingered long enough, being careful not to expose his face to the security cameras and avoid attention. When he did notice her gaze, he moved out of sight and she didn't see him again, though something about him had creeped her out.
Sarah finally put it out of mind as she didn't see him for the rest of her shift and got lost in the job, getting through the night by reading up on some of the local art exhibitions and galleries on the off chance they would have job vacancies.
But with yet another night of no leads Sarah handed the baton off to the next shift worker, giving him a brief rundown of the happenings and left the store. It was starting to lighten with the sky turning a darker violet as the night made way for day. There was something entrancing about seeing the shift in colour and she got lost in the sight, wanting to take it in and use the inspiration for her next piece.
It was while she was lost in the view that Sarah didn't notice the figure moving out of the alley a block down from the store. One that slowly moved closer in order to avoid alerting Sarah to his approach. As the pair were coming level with another gap between buildings the figure ran forward and grabbing Sarah forced her into the alley.
Sarah felt herself get seized by a large figure behind her and was tackled into the dark alley, opening her mouth to scream she felt a heavily calloused hand clamp down stifling the sounds. Terror overtook her being, this early in the morning there wouldn't be many, if any people out as they were still asleep.
Being forced deeper into the alley away from the opening she was shoved against the wall, her back hitting the bricks. With the hand still over her mouth she looked at the figure, and noticed that it was the individual that had been casing the store earlier in her shift.
She could see the hungry look in his eyes; his face was obscured with the hood and a dirty scarf over his mouth and nose. Despite trying to make out any more details, the dim light and his close proximity made that nearly impossible. Unable to talk she pleaded with her eyes, trying to convey her submission and agreement to do what he wanted.
Her fear went to new heights as he brought a gleaming knife up to eye level and with a gruff voice muttered something, though the scarf distorted the voice making it hard to hear. Seeing his face flush with anger at her confusion he shouted it again,
"I SAID, GIVE ME YOUR MONEY OR I'LL START CARVING UP THAT PRETTY FACE OF YOURS, you start screaming and I'll do it anyway." The words were very clear now and with her frantic nod he removed the hand over her mouth.
"I….I…I'll do anything, please don't hurt me", Sarah fumbled with her purse and in the face of her fear her nerves caused her to drop it on the ground spilling its contents everywhere.
"HURRY UP", the man roared.
"Yes yes s..s.s…sorry" Sarah stuttered out dropping to her knees, rummaging in the dim light, trying to find her wallet. Her fingers fumbled with the contents and the man's presence over her made her even more anxious as the time went on. She knew that the longer it took the higher the chance was he would start hurting her.
Finally grasping her wallet, she picked it up but in her current state dropped it on the ground again, hearing the growl Sarah knew the man's patience was drawing thin. The man stepped closer in frustration, and she cowered back against the wall hands over her head making herself as small as possible, feeling a gust of wind, she closed her eyes waiting for the impact, whether that be fist or knife.
Yet there was nothing, she opened her eyes for a peek, and the man was.... gone. Thinking that he had run after being found out, she looked towards the alley's mouth, yet it was empty and she could feel hope rising in her chest.
She slowly stood up and hearing a noise deeper in the alley she turned, noticing a figure standing tall in the centre, staring at a shape on the ground. Turning around at the sound of her movement she caught a glimpse of two eyes staring back at her, yet she didn't fear them, there was something about them that calmed her nerves. She knew that this figure was the one that had saved her and if she wasn't mistaken, her attacker was the lump on the ground.
"Tha....", her voice caught, as in that moment the impossible happened, with a blur the figure disappeared. Though Sarah felt the gust of wind following in his wake, her eyes had no chance of keeping up.
The shock of the moment set in and thinking of what could have happened brought her back to reality. Moving back to her scattered possessions she rummaged through them, bringing up her phone she dialled 911.
Hearing the phone dial, her heart rate started calming and her eyes drew to the body on the ground, her mind to the figure, thoughts racing trying to remember any details. She recalled in the light of a passing car a hint of red and blue adoring his clothes, apart from his eyes and this scant amount of information she had nothing to work with.