Escaping the Black Market

Ch.2

2MONTHS AGO

I will start 2 days before the shooting. The two days before he came I was getting ready to go to the mall with my friends. It was just entering December so it was getting colder. I was wearing a blue long dress with a sweater over it. The dress was my six-tenth birthday present, today was my birthday. The dress flowed to the ground and shimmered gently when the sun hit parts of it. I loved it, my mom had given it to me and it was the most beautiful thing I have ever owned. When she first gave it to me I had told her she should have saved the money to go to the black market fee. She refused to take it back saying that I deserved something special for my sweet sixteen. To thank her I gave her my warmest smile and promised to look for a job the following day. When the next day rolled around I managed to get a job at a small boutique down by the corner. It didn't pay much, but anything would help. After my shift at the shop, I drove home with the money I had earned in cash. I hoped that it would help lower our fee some. When I walked in, I put the money in our saving up jar, and went to my room to change. I simply put on a pair of shorts, tank, and a Jodie since after all it was cold outside. I was in the middle of fixing my hair when I heard it, a knock at the door. It was Jeremy, coming to look for the money we owed him and his boss. I stayed in my room, which was across from Lorri's, and whispered to her to go hide in her closet. I knew that we still didn't have enough money, and I didn't know what Jeremy was going to do. Then I heard it, two gun shots, my parents were dead.

I ran out of my room to my parents bodies, I didn't care about Jeremy any more, and cradled them in my arms. Jeremy just looked at me, and said, "get the rest of my money, or I'm coming back for the kid." I was still sobbing over my parents bodies when I realized we had to get away. I didn't really have a plan, but we couldn't stay here, I ran to Lorri's room to get her.

"Lorri, pack you bags!," I yelled from my room, while I was packing my stuff.

"Why? Where are mom and dad?", she sounded worried, I know she heard the gun shots.

I whipped the tears from my cheeks, "they-they aren't coming," I said painfully.

"What happened to them? I heard gun shots. Is that why they aren't coming?"

I moved into Lorri's room to get her stuff packed. I stopped and sighed, this is hard to explain to someone so young. But I couldn't lie, so I gritted my teeth and started to explain, "when you were little, you got extremely sick, and we had to go to the black market to get a loan to pay your medical expenses. They sent this guy, Jeremy, to collect the money. He came today, but we didn't hVe all the money. It didn't end we'll...."

"He killed them! Why?" Lorri screeched coming to tears at this point.

I went up and gave her a warm reassuring hug. "I do t know why. And I'm sad too, but we can't stay here. I will keep you safe.", I whispered into her ear, then continued packing, "now grab what you need because she are going away."

"I don't want to go without mom and dad!," Lorri screamed at the top of her lungs still crying.

I knew she couldn't help it but we had to go so I grabbed our stuff and walked out the back door, her following me reluctantly. " Lorri, I know you don't want to leave but we have to, I am in charge of keeping you safe. Now listen to me, we have to get out of here." I tried to say it as calmly as possible to get her to feel any bit better.