Chapter Five

By the time Shira had reached the road lined with shops and restaurants, she’d already forgotten her ravaging hunger. Her once snarling stomach now lay dormant as if it had been scared into silence by the ordeal of the attempted mugging. It felt unusually damp and cold where the urine had soaked into the thin material of her shorts even in this warm summer’s eve, sticking to her skin.

 

The summer rain was warm against her cheeks, gentle kisses on her skin. Droplets tapped gently on Shira’s cap, the sounds cosy and homely as they gathered at the edges of the hat and dripped from the brim. Shira clenched her fists, her eyes wide as she slowed to a halt. The sound of blood rushed in her ears. It was only then that she realised how deserted and empty the street was, save for a few cars parked along the pavements. The shops had already begun to shut, the shopkeepers locking the entrance doors behind them and pulling down the metal guards that rattled sharply in the air. The last of the restaurants’ customers were filing out of the doors, some laughing with smiles upon their faces, their voices shrill and cutting even at this distance underneath one of the many forlorn lampposts that lined the pavements.

 

One of the restaurants was beginning to close. Shira could see the waiters and waitresses inside clearing away the tables, taking the dishes left behind by the last customers and folding the stained and dirty tablecloths through the windows. If Shira approached them, perhaps they would help her and phone the police. Yes. That would do. She would worry about the later events when it came to them. For now, she would ponder upon finding help and getting to a safe place.

 

What if they throw me out?

 

She gritted her teeth and clenched her fists, realising for the first time how clammy her palms had become. No, they wouldn’t throw a kid back out onto the streets, would they? Thoughts pushed aside. She had to ask for help. She had no other choice.

 

Shira squeezed her eyes shut and pressed her fingers against her temples. It was now or never. She opened her eyes and glanced around at her darkened surroundings. Her heart pounded, threatening to leap into her mouth. Gulping, Shira lifted her leg, soft whimpers escaping from her mouth. With all her strength and might, she pushed her leg forward.

 

"Shira, Shira, can you hear me?"

 

The words burst through Shira's mind, the sound exploding in her ears the moment her foot was planted onto the pavement. Shira clamped her hands over her ears, tightly sealing her mouth shut to muffle her erupting animal-like screams.

 

"Shira, please! Speak to me!"

 

Tears flooded Shira's vision. Each word pounded through her head, smashing against her skull and crashing through her mind with every echo. Colours exploded in front of her eyes like a fireworks display, fizzling and crackling with each word that tore into her head.

 

“Don't do this, Shira, please...”

 

Shira squeezed her eyes shut, trembling from the agony that shot through her head. Still, the tears managed to prise their way through her eyelids and slide down her cheeks, silent and quick. The sounds of a woman sobbing tore into Shira's mind, each choking sob sharper and more agonising than the last. The pain seemed to sap the strength from Shira's legs, turning her muscles to nothing more than water. She could feel them threatening to collapse beneath her body at any second but she refused to allow herself to fall to the ground…

 

Then it suddenly finished as quickly as it had started.

 

The woman's sobs suddenly broke off as if a miraculous hidden switch had cut the invisible rope that connected Shira’s mind from the woman. The final sob sliced through Shira’s brain, echoing and rebounding against the inside of her skull until it became nothing. The exploding fireworks fizzled their last, dying into dark background and fading into silence and the pain became no more. It had sapped her of most of her strength, leaving her shaking as she continued to stand where she was. She braced herself for the woman’s voice again and for more pain, gritting her teeth and squeezing her eyes shut harder.

 

But it didn’t come.

 

Frowning, Shira slowly opened her eyes, allowing the harsh orange glow of the lamppost to flood her vision once more.

 

What the hell happened..?

 

Shira’s teeth chattered, her body trembling from head to toe. A feeling of light-headedness had begun to invade her brain and fog her mind, scrambling the individual strands of thoughts. Her heart still raced, its hammering a series of frantic beats in her ears.

 

“What are you doing out on the streets at this time of night?”

 

Shira whipped around upon hearing the sudden words, her heart jumping into her mouth. In front of her stood a policeman. His bright green jacket glowed magnificently in the surrounding darkness and the silver strips were almost blinding, as sharp as knives in the dim light. Underneath his jacket, he wore the typical Metropolitan uniform: black trousers ironed to a crisp, shining black boots with a mirror-like toe cap, a dazzling white shirt and a black cap that fitted snugly onto his head.

 

“Where are your parents?” the policeman wore a concerned expression on his face, his voice soft and gentle.

 

Shira’s bottom lip began to tremble.

 

“Do you know where your parents are?”

 

Shira burst into tears.