New Horizons

Written as my English CCA Narrative.

The tall man stood at the edge of the porch. From my viewpoint behind the treeline, I could see a middle-aged, motherly-looking woman open the door and greet him, inviting him inside. With a sigh I turned and began walking away. What would I give to live with normal human beings? Anything, that's what.

Trees were losing their dead leaves which now began to cover the ground, making my journey a hard and noisy one. My first autumn on my own I had developed a technique for crossing the crunchy ground silently, which I now deployed each fall. It had kept me safe so far so I had no reason to doubt it. So I began walking through the woods with silent, practiced footsteps, leaving the house with the man and the woman and the porch behind. 

For a while it was just me and the sound of my footsteps, with the occasional sound of nature. Eventually I was walking along a deserted highway, and it was growing dark out. The sound of my feet against the road was fairly comforting and I found myself relaxing and not as alert as I should be. I didn't notice the black van until the last second. It skidded to a halt beside me and something hit me on the back of the head. Everything went black.

I woke up on a soft surface, and with my eyes still closed I felt something covering me and something wet pressed to my forehead. A kind of fog clouded my senses for a brief moment. Then I realized I wasn't in the woods. I sat bolt upright, my eyes flying open, knocking the cloth from my forehead in the process. 

"She's awake. Get Joey." said a female voice. The woman was sitting right next to me on a chair, a calm, 'I'm-in-control-of-this', 'take-no-prisoners' look on her face. I didn't want to find out what her name was. The only other person in the room was a boy about my age, and she had just dismissed him to find 'Joey'. I saw my chance, and I took it. 

I bolted out of the bed. My feet hit the hardwood floor hard and I took off out the door and down the hallway. Within seconds the woman's footsteps were steady behind me, and she had the advantage since she knew where we were going, and I did not. I spotted a room with a half-open door, and darted in, slamming the door behind me. I pushed all my body weight on the door, and I could feel the woman pushing back. Her attempts lasted only a minute or so before I heard her running footsteps pound down the hallway. 

I locked the door and flipped on the light. I was in a bathroom; a rather empty and unused one by the looks of it. There was no shower curtain nor toilet paper,  and everything in the pale room was 

layered with dust. The mirror was cracked. Without really intending to I stepped over to it and looked at my reflection. My dark hair was knotted and tangled, I looked flushed, and my eyes were weary. I 

turned away from the stranger in the mirror and went to the small, dirty window. 

I was on the first story. The window was only about five or six feet from the ground. I placed my palms against the window and pushed it up with as much strength as I could muster just as the 

doorknob started jiggling. The window wouldn't budge. A few more futile attempts later a hand was on my shoulder. I whirled and kicked and hit for all I was worth.

"Easy, Alice! Easy!"

It took a moment for me to register the voice. Then I exhaled in relief. "What are you doing here?" I asked Eric. I'd met him in my travels a few times and we'd gotten along pretty well. He'd helped 

me out a few times, lending me money and on the particularly cold nights, a couch to sleep on. We were both on the same side, too; we hated Joey with all we worth. Joey Bosko had murdered both of my 

parents when I was ten, leaving me on my own and on the run for the past six years. He'd kidnapped Eric when he was nine years old, and Eric had been old enough to know what was going on. Eric was 

almost twenty-three now, and Joey would occasionally 'hire' Eric for the dirty work--meaning, he'd hold him at gun point and threaten him until he caved and did what he was told.

"Joey hired me. I figured I could use a couple extra bucks." He leaned out the open doorway and checked both ways before yanking me out. "You've really made him mad, you know, Alice." Eric 

told me as he lead me down several hallways, occasionally ducking in empty rooms. "He wanted to have all of your family out of his way but you've eluded him for years. He's on the rampage. He's willing to 

do anything to take you down. I'm risking my life trying to get you out of here."

"Then why are you doing it?" We turned into an empty room and he closed the door, flipping on the light. A mudroom. 

"Because I hate Joey. Anything that makes him angry, seeing him defeated...it's worth it. Besides, I'd be the only one with any information on you, he'd need me." Eric went searched through a large 

box in the corner. A moment later Eric pulled out a duffel bag and a car key. He handed the duffel to me, then lead me out the door on the other side of the room and into a garage. Behind us, in the house, 

people were shouting and doors were slamming open and shut. Sunlight spilled in from the open garage door. 

Eric rounded the hood of a black van and got into the driver's seat. I followed suit, hopping into the passenger side and tossing the duffel into the backseat as he geared the engine and pulled out of 

the garage. "There's seventy thousand dollars on the credit card in the duffel. I also got you a fake ID, passport, and a few changes of clothes. Toothbrush. Hairbrush. The necessities. I'm going to drop you off 

at the airport. From there you can catch any flight you want to any place you want to go. You have enough to get somewhere and start a life for yourself. Get a job, take some college courses. Get yourself out 

of your rut. Make a life for yourself. Your name is Alice still, but now you're Alice Corbet instead of Alice Plaut. Joey will expect you to have changed your name entirely s that will throw him off." 

I listened intently, reaching behind the seat to retreive the duffel. I dug out the hairbrush and ran it through my tangled hair. I had to appear normal if I were going to be in a public place and needed 

to blend in. Looking like I just crawled out of a dumpster was not a good idea. 

"We've got company." Eric said when we were a a few blocks away from the airport. "Change of plans. I'm gonna try to lose our tail, then I'll drop you a block from the airport." A  plane hummed 

as it took off nearby. I could see a speeding black van about a block behind us as we turned down one side road after another. Within a minute Eric had both vans lost in a labrinth of suburban houses. As soon 

as the coast was clear he pulled over and nearly pushed me out of the car. "Get into that bush until you see the other van drive by, then high-tail it to the airport. Just head in that direction-" He pointed across 

the street. "-and you'll get there within ten or fifteen minutes. Whenever you hear a car, hide. Get out of here, kid. Joey isn't winning this battle."

"You can bet your savings he won't." I agreed, glancing around nervously. I hauled the duffel over my shoulder. 

"I already did." Eric said solemnly, nodding his chin at the duffel. "Now get. Our tail should be showing up any minute." He reached over the console to slam my door shut and I jumped back into 

the bush. Eric sped away, and within thirty seconds the other van strolled along the street, the man in the passenger seat scouring the surroundings. The van slowed a bit near my bush, and I nearly choked on 

my breath. Luckily it sped away, spotting Eric's van through a gap in the houses. 

I took off, not looking back.