Family Is Chosen

Thief!

Boots beat against the pavement as a scrawny teenager ran as fast as they could. Thunderous footsteps sounded behind her, and she knew the cops were starting to send faster people after her, maybe they weren't so stupid after-all.

"Stop thief!"

Her heart was pounding in her throat as she clutched her package in her arms, right now the most important thing to her was losing the stupid boys in blue, and then getting home before anyone else saw her out and about. It was nerve wracking enough thinking that someone could have moved in one her sweet setup, she really didn't need anything else on her mind at the moment.

"Get lost!" She yelled back over her shoulders, taking the time to glance behind her and barely keep from tripping in shock as she saw how close they actually were to being able to grab her. Nearly cursing in her head, she faced forward and turned on a dime as an alley-way came up, laughing when she heard one of the bozos slip and skid into the opposing wall.

A dead end rested at the back of the alley she ducked into, but she wasn't focused or concerned about that. What she actually moved her attention to, was the looming fire-escape coming up in front of her. Moving her package to her mouth, she forced her already tiring legs to go even faster, knowing she'd need quite a bit of a boost if she truly expected to clear the ladder and grab the first platform without stopping.

"She's making a break for it!" One of the men shouted as they noticed her train of view. Despite the offending object in her mouth, she smiled at the realization that freedom was in her grasp. Taking a deep breath, she surged forward and stretched out her hands.

Time felt as if it had slowed way down as the teen vaulted for the fire-escape. Her calloused hands crashed into the rusted unforgiving metal and she dug her fingers in to get a good grip as her arms argued the new strain and her pursuers drew closer. Her eyes widened in horror as her grip started to fail and she could feel herself start slipping backwards. Grinding her teeth and growling, her arms strained under her old sweatshirt as she finally managed to drag her full body weight up onto the fire escape just as one of the officers jumped for her ankle.

Chris glared down at him and kicked at his hand, smiling in satisfaction as the man nearly yelped in pain and dropped back to the pavement holding his hand. Chris turned without any delay and quickly started scrambling up the long stairway towards the brick buildings roof where she could easily escape these popo. Moving the package back to her hands, she quickened her pace as the fire-escapes ladder was pulled down.

The men managed to make it three quarters of the way up the stairs by the time Chris had already reached the roof. Not wasting a second, she took off at a full sprint towards the side of the roof with the closest building. Holding her breath as her feet met the edge of the roof, she let herself go and sprung across the gap that felt as if it stretched out forever.

Her chest made a hard impact against the building's roof edge and she couldn't force back the yelp as she knew bruises bloomed under her clothes. Hauling her worn and battered body up, Chris didn't even stop for a glance behind her as she forced her body into a run again, jumping to the next building, thankfully this one was met with a much better landing than the previous attempts. Finally a full building away from the cops, she hopped over the side of the building and slid down the fire-escape until her feet were once again street-side.

"Come on Chris, think think think!" She hissed to herself as she struggled to find an adequate hiding place. Spotting a shady looking pawn shop, she quickly pulled her hood up and ducked through the doors. The soft tinkling of the bell placed above the door sill, had a woman behind the counter glancing at Chris.

She was an average lady, probably Mexican from Chris' evaluation, and held a certain air about her that really made Chris want to stay off the woman's bad side. Deciding to take a risk, which wasn't really uncommon for her, Chris hesitantly went up to the counter and tugged off her hood, revealing mussed bronze curls to the woman.

"Look, I'm not going to lie to you lady, I've got the cops after me right now but I swear I didn't kill anybody. I just took some stuff from a person I probably shouldn't even know about, but the point is, can I hide out here?"

The woman stared at the dirty teen before her before smirking and cocking her hip out to one side, "Hun, with the lawfolk in this city, I'mma have to say that being in my store is the safest place for you right now. Go ahead and head on in the back, there's a little fridge and a couch if you want to nap."

Adorning a look similar to that of a deer caught in the head lights, Chris stared at the woman in confusion at her kind offer before hearing the men's voices nearing the doors and making her book it to the back of the store. She slipped into the room that had been offered to her and quietly locked the door, to tired to care about the consequences of trusting a stranger, she stumbled over to the couch and promptly collapsed on its cushioned surface, slipping into a dreamless sleep.

(Well, that's the first chapter, hope you guys like it. Let me know what you guys think in the comments and don't be afraid to give me criticism, I really do appreciate that! So, buh-bye!)