Chapter 8 - The Girl

Robbin got to her feet, gathering her clothes in her arms. "Hurry up, you have to leave immediately," a female voice said.

Startled, Robbin jumped, dropping her clothes in the process. She looked in the direction of the voice and saw a young girl around her age standing with a small black bag slung over her shoulder.

The girl looked annoyed and impatient as she spoke again, "hurry, put your clothes on, we have to leave. You don't want to get caught with a body, now do you? "

Robbin looked at the girl, then at the man, then back at the girl, who was getting increasingly impatient. She quickly put her clothes on and stared back at the girl who was now walking towards her.

"For someone who just killed a man, you really are dumb. Come on, let's go," the girl said, grabbing her hand. She dragged her out of the house through the back door.

"Wait," Robbin said, stopping in her tracks.

"What now?" The girl, impatiently and slightly annoyed, asked, bouncing from one foot to the other, "I forgot something," Robbin said, as she ran back to the living room. She picked up her knife, cleaned it on a piece of cloth, and hurried back to the girl, who was surprisingly still waiting for her.

They both rushed out of the house into the street. It was dark out and the air was still damp and chilly due to the rain, which had finally stopped. They slowed their paces to avoid any suspicion.

As they walked, Robbin couldn't help but wonder about the girl. "Who are you?"

She asked, "I'm someone who just saved your life."

"Thanks, but what were you doing in that house?"

The girl stopped walking, looked at her and wittily retorted, "What were you doing in that house?"

Lowering her gaze to her bare feet, Robbin replied, "He gave me clothes and shelter from the rain."

"Why?" "Are you some kind of homeless girl?" The girl asked with a snort. Robbin nodded in reply.

"Oh" was all she said as she continued walking, leaving Robbin standing awkwardly in the middle of the street.

Robbin silently followed her as they walked in silence. "He used to give me food and money every time he saw me on the street. I thought he was a good person. That was why I agreed to go with him to his house."

" You have a lot to learn. Hasn't the street taught you anything? People are evil, and nobody cares about you. They only do things that'll benefit them. Every free gift comes with a price. Did you really think that a random stranger cared about an ordinary street girl in rags? " the girl said in a slightly raised voice, clicking her tongue and shaking her head disapprovingly.

Robbin felt sad but said nothing as they continued walking. They turned down a dark alley and then on to another street. They got to an area which seemed deserted except for an old abandoned building which was falling apart. The left section of the house had already fallen apart. It seemed like a haunted house. The girl climbed up the stairs leading into the strange-looking building.

Robbin stopped dead in her tracks, looking quizzically at the building. The girl stopped walking.

She said, almost laughing, "Come on, don't be scared. I'm not going to hurt you."

"I'm not scared" Robbin lied.

With a playful smirk across her lips, the girl said, "Okay, then come," obviously toying with her.

Robbin closed her eyes and then opened them again, staring at the stairs for a few seconds. She cautiously followed the strange girl, who she knew nothing about and whose name she still didn't know, into the eerie building, looking around as she went.

Debris was lying all around; broken bottles, broken chairs, other materials she couldn't identify and fallen parts of the house. Robbin carefully watched her steps to prevent getting injured. The girl led her down another flight of stairs, which was narrower and darker. As they walked, Robbin was stricken with fear, her heart palpitating rapidly in her chest. She felt around her pockets for her knife, carefully pulling it out.

She stopped walking as a flood of scary thoughts crossed her mind, "What if this girl was trying to kill her for killing that man?, She knew nothing about this girl anyway. Where is she taking me? Why is this place so dark? She did say I was naive and too trusting of people, and now I'm trusting her and following her down this dark staircase."

Slowly, she began climbing the stairs backwards while carefully keeping her eyes on the girl. Noticing her absence, the girl suddenly turned around to face Robbin, who was a few steps behind her. They both stopped and stared at each other.

"What are you doing?" She asked, "N... nothing," Robbin stammered.

The girl looked at her for a few seconds, then let out a loud laugh, pausing to catch her breath only to continue laughing. Taken aback, Robbin was totally puzzled by this strange girl and her equally strange behavior.

After a little while, the girl calmed down and said, "I know you are scared; it's written all over you, but you have nothing to worry about, you cute naive girl. I know this seems strange and weird, but I promise I won't hurt you. Nobody would hurt you. You have my word. "

Robbin said nothing, she only stood where she was and continued staring at the girl whose statement was anything but reassuring. She still had that glint of mischief in her eyes. Her statement was actually frightening. What did she mean by "cute naive girl?" Is she trying to mock me? " Robbin thought.

Sensing her dilemma, the girl slowly walked up to her, rolling her eyes in irritation.

She explained, "This is where I live... Well, I and some of my friends, we're also homeless like you, but unlike you, this is our home and we know how to get by. We know how to survive the streets. "

Holding out her hand, she said, "Come, I'm not usually this patient."

Robbin hesitantly took her hand, and together they continued down the dark staircase leading to the basement.

They arrived at a large metal door, trap music could be heard from behind the door. It had no handle, making it impossible to be opened from the outside. The girl knocked in a special way, like she was passing a message or giving a code. After a few seconds, the door was opened slightly, revealing a tall, well-built young man who looked intimidating.

Robbin shivered a little, unsure if it was due to the weather or the sight of the man at the door.

He looked at the girl then at her, "Who is this?" He asked, in a deep voice that fit his looks.

"Let us in, I'll explain everything."

He was hesitant, he looked over his shoulder, then back at the both of them for a few seconds before letting them through.

As they walked in, Robbin looked around, it looked like a frat house or a gang hideout. An old couch was awkwardly placed in an area close to the door with some kids around her age sitting on it, playing a game of cards. A few feet away were a couple of beds. The room was quite scattered and disorganized, but she wouldn't expect any better from a group of homeless kids. She found the source of the blasting music she had been hearing from outside—a speaker placed close to the sofa. She wondered why it was being played so early in the morning.

A voice called from somewhere in the room, "Elnora, you're back. Did you get anything? "

Following the voice to the end of the room, Robbin looked up. There was a well-built man seated at a table, It wasn't large, but it was like a dining table fit for 6 to 8 people. The table was covered with various items. Two kids stood beside the man like his body guards. Robbin stifled a smile at the sight of the kids. The room seemed to be full of only young people like herself.

The girl, who Robbin now knew as Elnora, smiled, increasing her pace as she walked towards the man.

"I got us a few valuable items, I got quite lucky today."

The man seemed very pleased. Robbin figured he was the leader of the group. He looked older than all of them and he had an air of authority and control.

He looked past Elnora, who was almost at the table, and asked, "Who is this?"

With that, time stood still as everyone stopped what they were doing and all eyes fell on her, the room was silent for a few seconds but for the music playing, Elnora stopped and turned to look at Robbin, it seemed like she had forgotten she was there.

"Oh! She murdered the bastard because he was trying to rape her." she said with a shrug.

Robbin felt so self-conscious, she wished she could simultaneously combust into smithereens or just disappear.

The man rose to his feet and walked to Robbin, looking at her with a serious expression, "Are they going to kill me for murdering someone?" Robbin wondered as the man approached her.

Reaching her, he put his hands on her shoulders. She instantly flinched at his touch, but he only smiled and said, "Don't be scared, you're safe here. Welcome to the family, you can call me Jeff."

She let out a loud breath that she didn't know she was holding.

He laughed and said, "You don't seem like someone who just killed a person."

She shrugged and said, "I did what I had to do."

Laughing even louder, he turned around and said to everyone, "I like her already, make her feel comfortable, we'll get to know more about her later. "

With that, he walked back to his seat and everyone else went about their business, leaving Robbin standing awkwardly in the center of the room.

Elnora emptied the contents of her bag onto the table; jewelry, cash, credit and debit cards, two laptops and phones; she added them to the pile of things on the table. Excitement showed on the face of the man whose name she now knew as Jeff.