’He must be here somewhere!’
Kevin Davidson held his breath and pressed himself against the wall of the derelict shop. He tried to merge into the grey croncrete, desperate to make himself invisible. Difficult when you’re wearing a red tracksuit.
It didn’t work
’There he is!’
In the twilight, Kevin could just make out the boy with the black hair who was pointing at him. There was real venom in his voice. Why did he hate him? Kevin wondered. He had never seen him before, never seen any of them. Yet they were, like a pack of rabid dogs drooling after him. Kevin threw himself forward and jumped over a broken wall. They broke into a run after him. One, two, three – more of them appearing from every direction.
’You can’t run from us,’ one of them shouted. ‘You can’t hide.’
They were right. He didn’t know this part of town well enough to hide from them. Where could he go? Where was safe?
Nowhere. Not here. Not for him.
He kept running, though his legs were aching and his heart was pounding. It was fear that kept him going.
Why were they after him? What had he ever done to them?
he had no doubt that this crowd meant to do some serious kicking if they caught him.
But why?
Because he was new in town?
They were closing in on him. He glanced behind and almost yelled when he saw how close they were. He rounded a corner and found himself heading for the car park underneath one of the tower blocks. Maybe he could hide himself there. Find a lift, an escape route. Someone to help him.
They were still behind him. He didn’t dare look to see how near, but he could hear their feet pounding closer. If he didn’t find a hiding place in this car park, he was done for.
Suddenly one of them hooted, ‘He’s in here! We’ve got him now!’ They were all screeching with delight at the thought of their prey, trapped. Then their chant began.
’We’re the Rebels, and we always get our man!’ Over and over.
Even in his terror, Kevin thought how stupid they sounded. He would have laughed another time. Everyone was in a gang around here. Kevin wasn’t. He didn’t belong to any of the gangs that roamed the area, battling with each other, preying on each other. Was that a reason to hate him? Maybe not. He was new in this part of town. Fair game.
’Keep away from those gangs, Kevin,’ his dad had warned him when they moved here. But he’d hardly needed to be told. Kevin preferred his own company, or playing computer games with the one friend he had made so far – Tommy. Or going to the cinema. To join a gang, and belong, blend in with the others, that had never appealed to Kevin.
The darkness of the car park suddenly swallowed him up. His running footsteps echoed and the noises from the street seemed miles away now. Maybe, he thought, running in here hadn’t been such a good idea after all.
He stopped for a second and looked around. There were always places to hide in films. Cars left open, keys handily left in the ignition so he could roar out past the Rebels and make his escape. He could almost picture their shocked, stupid expressions as he revved the car, gave them two fingers and raced off.
If someone had just been kind enough to leave their keys in the ignition, that is.
But no one would be stupid enough to leave a car door open in this area.
He slipped behind a pillar and tried to think. His eyes were growing accustomed to the darkness now and they zoomed around, searching for an escape. The green EXIT sign leapt at him. Wherever that door led to would be safer than where he was now.
’He has to be here somewhere.’ The voice was so close that Kevin caught his breath and was sure they had to hear him.
’We’ll get him,’ another voice said, ‘and then he’ll be sorry.’
Over my dead body, Kevin thought, and regretted thinking it at once. His dead body was probably what they had in mind.
He took a deep breath. He had to reach that door before they spotted him. He could make it, he was sure of that. Only one car stood between him and the EXIT door – and once he made it to that car he could crouch down behind it and move, unseen, to safety and freedom.
Crikey, he thought, I’m thinking like Arnold Schwarzenegger with a whole gang of killer robots behind him
’Spread out!’ a voice ordered. The leader. Kevin could tell by the authority in his tone.
The leader! What kind of boys were they who had to have a leader? Couldn’t they think for themselves?
Well, not Kevin Davidson. He had brains, and he was going to use them to get out of here before this crazy bunch splattered them all over the concrete.
’You better get him!’ The leader sounded angry, and that anger sent shivers up Kevin’s spine.
Why was it so important to get him? One thirteen year-old boy who had never done them any harm at all. Wasn’t there some other poor idiot they could chase, harass, catch? What had he done to deserve their attention?
He looked again at the car, judging the distance. He could make it. He knew he could make it. He knew he could. He was going to get away from them. He almost felt like thumbing his nose at them. He took one step, hidden by the pillar, into the darkness.
Go for it, Arnie baby, he thought to himself
Another step, then another. Stealthy, like a panther. One more step and he would be completely hidden behind the car. Safe.
And that was when all hell broke loose.
The car’s alarm began to screech. Its lights began to flash. Kevin looked behind him. They were all there, turning on him.
He was trapped. They were all around him, advancing. And all Kevin could do was to back up against the car that was still screeching out his presence like a traitor.
They were so close he could see their eyes, and there was hate, venom, viciousness in every pair. But why? This was so stupid. He didn’t even know why they were after him.
The leader stepped forward. ‘Let’s show him what we do to people we don’t like, boys,’ he said.
Kevin took a deep breath. He wasn’t going to go down without a fight. But it would be useless. There were too many of them. He was done for. Nothing could save him now.