As I stood there looking at my new home, I replayed in my head what had happened to lead me to this low point in my life. It had all started back in Sunset Valley, when I was working a job for a criminal mastermind. I had gotten a name for myself as a master thief. My job was to steal data from the world leader’s personal computer in his study.
I climbed up a tree in the back of the house and entered through some doors on a balcony. Security was either slacking, or I was just getting better at my job, because no one had noticed me. I thought it was a bit strange, but carried on; I had a job to complete. I exited the bathroom into the master bedroom, crept out of the room and down the stairs towards the study, staying to the shadows as much as I could.
When I entered the room, I was shocked to see three police officers waiting for me.
“Well if it isn’t the stray cat we have been waiting for,” chuckled the guy sitting behind the desk.
Someone had obviously snitched on me.
“Actually, I’m a master thief, not a cat burglar, and here’s me thinking the police were intelligent people.” I replied with a smirk; the guys’ smile quickly faded.
“Well, we are intelligent enough to catch you” the police officer replied quickly and sharply.
I clapped my hands and walked forward.
“Think again.” I said, quickly grabbing the laptop and then ran out of the room.
My car was parked outside, so I jumped in and dashed the laptop into the back seat and drove off. The police was right on my tail, but thankfully, to quick driving skills and experience of high speed chases, I lost them. As I looked at the laptop and looked through the messages, one in particular caught my eye, so I clicked into it. I was shocked to see the sender was my boss; he had ratted me out.
I drove to the abandoned warehouse where my boss had set up his evil empire. I knew I was stupid for doing it, I was just so angry, and I had to know why he’d done it. I put in the code to get in and went through the secret door and went down the steps leading to the underground control room.
I burst in screaming my head off, “How could you? You slime-ball, I hope you rot in hell.”
After I finished yelling at him, he calmly spoke back.
“Miss Smith…” he started,
“Oh screw the formalities, jerk” I shouted interrupting him.
“Very well. You see I want total world domination; I can’t do that with the likes of you working for me, thieves, ha, the jokes of evil empires, and I can’t just fire you so you can turn against me, I had to have you arrested.” He said.
I stood there in shock was he being serious? The guy was definitely mad on power.
He stood up and left, followed by his body guard. “Oh, and Jane, we don’t want anything to slip. I hope you understand.” He looked at the two guys working the computers, and as he walked through the door, he signaled them to kill me. I turned around and saw the two men rise from their chairs and approach me. I had to shake off the shock and fight for my life. Of course I won the battle, I wasn’t as innocent or weak as my figure would suggest. I whipped off my mask and put it on the table.
“I quit” I said.
I left the building and saw my car had been taken. I had to admit there was nothing I could do.
“Just go home…” I thought to myself “they don’t know where you live, and tomorrow you’ll disappear.”
When I got home, my heart almost broke; my home was on fire. I cried at how quickly they had managed to do it. My car was in the driveway, but empty. My passport! My money! They’re in the house, how will I start a new life. I bucked up my courage and ran inside. My home, my possessions, proof of my existence was being burned before my eyes.
I ran upstairs and into the spare room, I pulled open the top draw and took my passport, and my savings. When I saw the name on my passport I froze, ‘Charice Temple’. My gosh how long it had been since I had used my real name. Everyone in Sunset Valley new me as Becky Smith, a persona I made up to hide my true identity. I pulled myself back to reality, when I heard calling from on the other side of the door; it was X, my ex-boss’s body guard.
They must have seen me run in and wanted to finish me off. Luckily I had a secret escape route leading to the back of my house that only my builder and I knew about, but seeing as he was murdered by my boss a day after finishing my house, I doubt anyone else knew. I opened the secret door and went in, the thick stone cooled the air by stopping the heat from getting in; a design feature just in case something like this happened.
I escaped out the back and ran across to my neighbors’ house, a perky annoying person called ‘Fay’, oh I prayed she wouldn’t be in, I wasn’t in the mood for her high pitched voice and happy-go-lucky attitude.
I jumped the fence and sneaked in the back-door. I often came here if I needed a place to escape, or had to steal some coffee. I saw her asleep in her room, so I had to sneak and hope not to wake her. I looked at my hands, they were covered in ash and soot so was my face.
I decided to make a quick visit to Fay’s bathroom for a quick wash. The tap water must of woke her up because she stood behind me, I almost jumped out of my skin when she spoke.
“Hi-ya” she said gleaming.
Seeing my reaction, she gave a quick sigh before continuing to speak,
“You must be shook up, huh? Don’t worry I saw the fire and called the fire people or whatever they’re called. I knew you’d be ok, it’s like we’re twins I could totally sense you were safe. What’s with the black outfit? Were you at a party? I was gonna go out, but I was like Fay, you need your sleep.”
I quickly cut in before she could continue speaking, it took all my strength not to knock her out cold,
“Hey Fay, I’m sorry I broke in, I had nowhere else to go, I hope you don’t mind”. Sad thing was as much as I disliked Fay, she was the only one I could call the closest thing to a friend in Sunset Valley.
She smiled and took me to her spare room.
“You must be tired, feel free to stay as long as you want” she said.
I started to undress, but she still hadn’t left. I climbed into the bed, and she leaned over and tucked me in.
“Sweet dreams”, she said with a broad smile on her face as she left.
As soon as I heard her bedroom door shut, I got out of bed. I had to disguise myself, so I went through her draws to get a new outfit. I took some other clothes as well, seeing as I didn’t have any now except my work clothes. I got dressed and left, making sure I was extra quiet with my sneaking; I didn’t know how quick Fay would fall asleep.
As I crept out of the house I noticed Fay was on her computer; she was sending an email, I thought it was strange, even for her. So I picked up my pace and sneaked as fast and quietly as I could without distracting her.
I noticed there was a motorbike in Fay’s driveway. It was that sickly hot pink one she always rode everywhere. I saw the keys were still in the engine and the helmet was on the side.
“This is just begging to be stolen” I chuckled to myself as I put on the matching helmet and turned on the ignition.
“Thanks Fay”, I whispered as I sped out of her driveway and down the street.
I sped out of Sunset Valley ready for my new life. I went to the highway motel, and, using my real name for the first time in many years, I booked a room. In the morning, I woke up, looked out my window, and there was Fay! My eyes widened. “What’s she doing here?” I thought. My heart dropped when I saw her with X. Fay was dressed in black and had a gun in her hand. I soon realized she had known who I was all along, and had not just happened to leave her door open that night, nor her key in the ignition of her bike.
“But how?” I asked myself, it must have been the bike; there must have been a tracker.
I got dressed and put my things in my bag. In the car park around the back, I saw a little shabby car. I inspected it and saw there was no alarm, so I broke the window and hot-wired it before speeding off. Neither X or Fay suspected it to be me. Luckily the night before, while I was in the motel, I had used the internet to locate a new place to start my life, and I found the perfect place; a busy down-town neighborhood called ‘Bridgeport’, the perfect place for someone like me to blend into. So getting directions at the next gas station, I drove for Bridgeport. Unfortunately, just as I arrived, the shabby car broke down. I decided to ditch the car and walk, the car could be the local councils’ problem now.
As I walked, I became intimidated with the view of the giant city and the big homes.
“Obviously owned by some powerful or famous people”, I thought.
It wasn’t long before I got to a train station. I looked at the map to find the home office, so I could qualify for a citizen of Bridgeport.
The Home Office was just as intimidating as the view of celebrity homes. As I entered, I asked for directions at the front desk. I was introduced to a posh red-headed woman, who helped me with the paperwork. After three grueling hours, she smiled at me.
“Congratulations Miss Temple, you are now a fully fledged member of Bridgeport’s community. Now I have to ask, have you sorted out any accommodation?” She said.
My face expression just dropped, how had I not thought of that?
“Not to worry, we also help new citizens find a place to call home here in Bridgeport, how much is your budget?” she continued.
“Erm, about §16,500” I replied.
She raised an eyebrow, undermining me.
“Furnished or Unfurnished? Although I doubt you’ll get many decent places furnished on your budget”, she said snidely.
“Furnished, I’d hate to make your job easier, and I’m not keen to go shopping for furniture”, I replied.
Truth is, I love shopping, but I just wanted to wipe her smug look off her face, and I did.
“Only three places available I’m afraid, two apartments, or a house in the hills.” She said.
“The hills? The hills in which all the famous people live? Ha! And she said I wouldn’t get anywhere decent” I thought.
“I think the one in the hills will do me. These boots aren’t made for walking up steps to any apartment.” I said, rubbing her nose in what I thought was an amazing deal.
When I left, it had already gotten late, but the nice lady at the front desk in reception called a taxi for me. I sat in the back and happily looked out the window as we drove up the hill with all the big houses, wondering which one was mine. But as we passed them all, I started to worry. Where exactly was my new house? I hadn’t even checked. I felt so stupid! I was so caught up in trying to rub that red-headed woman’s nose in my new house, and I didn’t know anything about it.
My heart sank as the driver went off the main road onto some dirt trail. He pulled up in front some old stone shack with a giant metal mesh fence.
“Is this the place?” I asked the driver.
“Yes, I was a bit shocked when I heard someone bought it. It used to be a summer camp, but closed down years ago. I remember coming here as a kid and thinking it was haunted” the driver replied.
I paid the driver and got out, taking my things with me and placing them on the ground. I sighed, not only out of frustration, but also for relief.
“At least I’m not dead” I said to myself.
I stopped to take it all in. I quickly thought back to how this had all happened, picked my stuff back up and went inside. It was dusty and depressing. There was a little set of drawers and a bed in one corner, a kitchen in another corner, and a table and chair in a third corner. I put my stuff in the drawer and climbed into the bed. Hopefully tomorrow, the first day of my new life, would be better.
~End of Chapter~
