Down the Alley - Ray Bear (books for students to read txt) 📗

Chapter 1 Eladore

Hello, my name is Eladore. I am 12 years old. If I say my last name, people might here it, people in Red Claw. The Red Claw is an organization where people torture other people to death. I am in a world of hiding right now, where you either kill, or be killed. I perfere to hide, I don't think I could even bare watching someone torture anyone or anything. Most people hide inside their house, though I learned that they don't find you as much when you hide outside. That reason is because everyone hides inside, so the Red Claw always knows the people will be inside their houses. So that is my world, a world you do not want to live in!

 

I only have one friend, he is a boy, super skinny, but strong, dirty blond hair, the most blue grey eyes you will ever see. And he does NOT have clean clothes. But I guess no one really does. In this town, your lucky to even get 1 change of clothes! But anyway, back to my friend, he has a pet dog who is brown with white spots, and the dog's name is Rascal. His name? Ok, my best and only friend's name, is Tom. Tom's parents died when this all started, mine died when I was three. Tom found me, and we became friends, then his parents took me in as their own. I am like Tom's only sister, he is like my only brother. He protects me, and I do the cooking, cleaning, and washing. Tom was going to have a brother, but he died in the wohm.

 

Me and Tom live in a sewer, that is located down an alley, behind a dumpster, and down the sewer hole. There is no water in the corner we live in, so we live down there in a small dead end. It isn't as gross as you'd think it would be. There is really no rats, like people tell you, and we live in a fairly clean corner of the place. we hung a big long old blanket at the entery, and we hang towels and stuff on it to dry. Tom does the hunting and gets the food, and no one ever sees where he goes everyday.

 

Most of the time, I am down here, enless I am behind the dumpster getting fresh air, it is not that much more fresh, but it is better than the sewer. I hardley EVER go out of the alley though, I never have to, and I wouldn't want to! Who would if there is a chance of getting caught? Tom doesn't go out enless it is for food, and ussually there is food in the alley. A rat comes in, or we get food out of the dumpster, stuff like that. You probably see us as pigs, but that is how we have to be. Or we would starve to death, no one in this town wants to die. Unless they are misserable. But me and Tom? We want to survive! And we will! I want this mess to stop, and if I can get other people to help me, someday, this mess will stop. We can stop living like pigs, and eat real food, real GOOD food!

Chapter 2 The Outside

"Fine then, if you won't go outside, then I will!" Insisted Eladore "NO! It is too dangerous today." complained Tom. "How do you know that?"

"How do you think? I was just out there!"

"And what made it more dangerous then usual? We have to get food. We haven't updated our food storage in two weeks! We are almost out. And what about Rascal? He hasn't gotten fod for three days!"

"NO is my anwser! I am not changing my mind."

"Fine. We'll send a message to our cousins to get it. Our cousins who live in the morgue."

 

(I know. Creepy. They live in the morgue. But it is actually a good thing. No one ever checks there so they never get caught.) 

"Ok, I am fine with that." So once me and Tom had agreed, we got one of our spare bottles, put a letter about food in there, and sent it down the sewer stream. That is how we get word around. Everyone has nets at there house, so they messages get caught in the net, then when they check there net, they see their message.

 

The message that we sent said,"Dear Roberts family, we were wondering if you could send some food down the river. Tom said it is to dangerous to get food, and we are running low. Please answer back soon with some food. Thank you. From- Your cousins, the Bennets." And we sent the letter onto the stream leading to the morgue.

 

                                                       TWO DAYS LATER

"Oh Tom, it isn't here yet. We have to go out! Please? I will be extra careful."

"Fine, we can go out. We will meet back at the dumpster at 3:30. OK?"

"Alright Tom. Can I bring Rascual this time? You brought him last time."

"Alright, you bring Rascual. Now go. Who ever gets the most food doesn't have to do the laundry!" It is a game we play. It makes the world a little less scary when we make thing into games. This game is a compitition. Whoever gets the most food, doesn't have to do laundry. Whoever gets the least food, has to do all the laundryfor that week's laundry. Me and Rascal went off running, up the ladder, through the sewer hole, around the dumpster, and then we stopped. We were at the town. To get food, we had to go to the forest. It was on the other side of the town... So we snuck through the town with a trash can over my head. Rascual just stayed close by.

 

When we got to the forest, I was suprized to what I saw. The trees were cut down, and the Red Claw was making a big building. Then, a tall, big, and muscley man spotted me. I ran!

Chapter 3 Caught

 I was running so fast, I couldn't see where I was going. I almost ran into three trees, and then I ran into the building. It had a metal cover over the wood, and when I slammed into it, I felt sick. Everything was blury, when it finnally wasn't blury anymore, I saw the man running up to me with a baseball bat in his hand. I couldn't think, and so I ducked down, and I covered my hands over my head. I buried my face into my knees, which caused me to see... a sewer hole lid. It was about 5 yards away. The man was still running toward me, and I decided I had a chance. So I ran, I got to it when I realized I couldn't go in. Rascal, he wasn't here! He must of gotten caught. I couldn't leave him, I couldn't let him get tortured. So I let the man catch me. I know. I would have had a better chance getting Rascal back without letting myself get caught. But I wasn't thinking, I had just ran into a building, Okay? He ran up to me, and I went into the position I was in before. Then he hit me with the bat. On my head. I started going blury, then everything turned black. My last thought was that one day, this would end. It all would.

 

I woke up in a prison cell. My stomacht started to growl. Thats when I realized that I was hungry the whole time, I thought back to the man chasing me, the sewer hole, how I stayed because of Rascal. Rascal. Where was he? What had happened to him? Is he still alive? I hoped he was okay! Then I heared howling, I was so scared that it was Rascal! What if he is being tortured right now? What if I can't save him? What if I am next? Then I heared footsteps comming down the stairs to my cell... And voices, but some of the parts I couldn't hear.

"I know that she will be scared of us."

"Me too, but ... too ask her"

"I ... but I really don't think she will ..."

"She would be good for ... Did you see how fast she ran?!?"

"Ya, now be quiet. She can probably hear us!"

 

No more voices. Then I saw shadows comming up to my cell. Then I saw them. They were two men, one tall, one fat. Both very muscley! They unlocked the door, brought in three fold-up chairs, and motioned for me to sit in one. I sat. Then one asked me, "We have a very important question for you" I stated,"So do I."

"We will go first. Do you want to join?" Even though I knew exactly what they meant, I asked, "What do you mean join?"

"Will you join the Red Claw? If not, you die. We think you would be good for us. Your running could come in handy."

"I will think about that. Now my question. Where is my dog? Is he okay?"

"Your dog? What dog?"

"You mean you don't know where my dog is? You didn't take him? I LET MYSELF GET CAPTURED FOR NOTHING?!?" (I may not be the bravest person, but I had the guts to stand up for myself, and my dog. I also had the guts to yell at the Red Claw... apparently.)

 

"Whoa, wait a minute, you let yourself get caught? For a stupid mut?"

"HE IS NOT A STUPID MUT!" I took a deep breath, "Okay, just tell me if you have my dog, or not."

"We don't. I am sorry. But do you want to join?"

"I... I don't know. How long do I have to decide?"

"You have three hours before you... get... tortured. So decide before then." And with that, they left. I was alone again.