Runner (The Runners Book One) Read online

  Runner

  Logan Rutherford

  Copyright Logan Rutherford 2011

  Published at Smashwords

  Prologue

  He is running. That is all he knows. He used to have a normal life. He had a family, friends, and a job. In fact, before the incident, he had just gotten his first car.

  It was a sunny day. He was just getting back from going to the movies with a couple of friends, to celebrate is sixteenth birthday. He was opening the door to his house, when he noticed all the lights were off. Suddenly, they turned on just as his family and his friends jumped out and yelled “Surprise!”

  That day, he was showered with gifts. Before the surprise party was over, he got the best gift of his life. He opened a bag from his parents, and inside was some car keys. He realized what was happening, and he ran outside. There it sat in all of its glory, a ’69 Ford Mustang, Red with black racing stripes, and a convertible hood.

  It was the best gift of his life. He never thought that he would get a Mustang for his first car. He knew that he loved his parents, his car, and his life.

  Well, his old life. That is all that it is now, a memory. Now, his life is spent running from something that he does not even understand. All he knows is that some very bad people are after him, and he will do whatever it takes to be free from their grasp. Free from the grasp of the unknown.

  Chapter One

  His feet splashed in puddles of water from the rain. Thunder cracked as lightning flashed across the night sky. The storm was right on top of him, but something else was on top of him, too. Something much worse than the storm that is above him. He has no clue who is chasing him, or why. The only thing he knows was what was on written on the note that he found the day this all began, the note that said, “Run”

  The footsteps began to grow louder behind him. He heard the shouts of the Leader barking orders to his men. He knew the voice of the Leader of the pack that was hunting him all too well. However, he has no clue who he is. Does this man have a family? He doubted that. He probably had no heart, since he was hunting after a sixteen-year-old. Maybe, he was forced to do whatever it is he’s doing. Maybe his family was being held hostage. He could only hope that if the Leader ever caught up to him, he could talk his way out of whatever fate was waiting for him at that time. However, he doubted that.

  He pushed those thoughts out of his mind. He had to focus on staying alive. The rain was blinding his eyes. He could barely see. However, what he did see was a gas station.

  He ran into the door. It was locked. He looked inside and saw it was closed. He searched for something to smash open a window.

  The footsteps grew closer, and slowed to a brisk walk. They knew they had him.

  He grabbed a rock and threw it as hard as he could at the window. Cracks webbed from the spot where the rock hit. He kicked the window with full force, and it shattered under the weight. Inside, he searched for something to defend himself with. He has to slow them down, somehow.

  He searched behind the counter…nothing. He saw a phone, and thought about calling the police. But, he remembered what happened last time he did that. Every officer that was dispatched got killed. The memory brought a pang of guilt inside of him. He was responsible for the deaths of those officers. The probably had a family. He pushed those feelings aside, and turned the guilt into adrenaline.

  He realized that there was no running. He had to fight. But how could he? He is fit, and he does a lot of running. However, he does not have knowledge of any self-defense arts, other than just swinging his fists, which will not work against these guys.

  Then, he saw it: the machine that turned on the gas pumps. An idea began to form in his mind.

  He turned on one of the pumps; grabbed a lighter from the counter; ran to the broken window; and looked outside. He saw the Leader and his four henchmen walking straight for him. He sprinted for the nearest pump and turned it on. He poured to gas on the ground all around him. He left it pumping and threw it on the ground. He ran to the opposite side of the pumps. The pack was almost in position. He smiled as he realized his plan was going to work. The Leader was standing in the puddle of gasoline, now or never. He lit the lighter and tossed into the puddle of gasoline that was on the ground. It instantly went up in flames. The flames followed the trail back to the pump, and the station went up in flames.

  But he was already running far, far away.

  Chapter Two

  The sun was rising over the horizon. He was lying on the bed in the motel room that he got, the night before. Normally, he wouldn’t risk it. Nor, would he waste the money on one. But after last night, he figured it would be safe enough to get a motel room. He did not have to worry about the Leader or his pack chasing after him anymore, or, at least until a new Leader and a new pack is sent after him by whoever it is that is chasing him.

  He walked into the bathroom, turned on the shower, and got in. After the shower, he got dressed and went down for some breakfast. Even the free continental breakfast was one of the best that he’s had in a while. He went back to his room and packed his backpack. He brought with him some clothes, a toothbrush, an extra pair of shoes, a butterfly knife, and a picture of his parents and little sister.

  He looked at the picture of his family. They’re the reason that he’s doing this. He will stop at nothing until they are-There is a knock at the door. He grabs the knife out of his backpack, and the walks to the door, with the knife held tightly behind his back. He looks through the peephole and gasps. It was the Leader. He was standing there with his shaved head and muscled biceps. He never saw the Leader this close up, but he was huge: at least six foot eight.

  His face went pale, and his knuckles white around the knife. He ran to the window and looked out. There was no one else with him. How did he survive? Is he the only one that did?

  Nevertheless, he has to think of something, and quick. He goes to the phone, and takes it out of the cradle. His hand hovers over the nine. Should he call 911? However, a police officer would have to come, and he was not going to let what happened last time happen again. Maybe the officer could just distract the Leader while he snuck out. Then, he could call out for the Leader and have him chase him, leaving the officer alone.

  He dialed the number.

  “911, what’s your emergency?” The operator said.

  “Yes, I have a man who’s trying to kidnap me. I think he has a gun.” He violently whispered.

  “Okay, son, where are you?”

  Sadness washed over him. She called him son. The last time somebody called him that was the day this all began when his dad called him that. The word echoed in his brain. He could not contain himself anymore. Fear, hate – rage, surged through him. He tightens his grip on the knife, and runs to the door. He yanks it open as hard as he can and he jumps on top of the Leader. He screams as he rapidly stabs him. He stops when he realizes that the Leader is dead.

  He does not feel sorry for him. He deserves it, for the torment he put him through. What he’s put his family through. He drags the body inside, and begins to search it. He finds a wallet, a cell phone, a SD card, and a gun.

  He puts them all out on the bed, and examines them. The wallet has about 500 dollars in cash, but nothing else that would give him answers. He looks through the cell phone; all the recent calls were to, and from, the same number. He grabbed a piece of paper from the desk in the motel room and writes the number down, and shoves the paper in his pocket. He also puts the SD card in his pocket with the paper. He will have to get a computer. He stares at the gun. Should he take it? If it was found on him he would be arrested. Nevertheless, it could come in handy. Finally, he decides to take it.

  He grabbed his ba
ckpack and began to run. He heard the police sirens in the distance. He runs for the nearest pay phone. He had a few phone calls to make.

  Chapter Three

  He grabbed the phone and put in a couple of quarters. Then, He punched in the numbers that were from the cell phone.

  “Hello?” A voice said as it picked up the phone.

  “Who is this? What do you want from me?” He said into the phone.

  “Transferring. Please hold.”

  “Wait, don’t you-” But it was too late. After a series of beeps and rings, the phone picked up.

  “Hello?” A man said. He had a defiant, voice, and he talked very monotonic.

  “What do you want from me?” He screamed.

  “Hmm, Subject Number Seventeen. How nice to finally hear from you. It took you long enough.”

  “What? Wait, who is this?” He asked.

  “My name is Marcus Wright.”

  “Okay, Marcus. What do you want from me?” He asked.

  “I’ll tell you what I want from you.” Marcus said slyly. “Over my dead body! You’re missing the point! You have to figure it out for yourself!”

  “All by myself? I have been running for weeks! Over my dead body!” Seventeen screamed.

  “Tell you what,” Marcus began. “Let’s save ourselves from having to deal with all these dead bodies. How about your sister’s dead body? You would like that, wouldn’t you?”

  “You wouldn’t dare.” Seventeen said between his teeth, His blood boiling with hatred for this man.

  “Oh, yes I would. Don’t test me.”

  “Let me speak to her.” Seventeen demanded.

  “I’m sorry she’s busy at the moment. Did you know that she turned eight today?” Marcus said as he began to laugh.

  Seventeen felt a little guilty. He didn’t remember. But, after all that he’s been through, who could blame him? Still…

  “What do I need to do?” He asked.

  “Well, since it took you long enough to get this number, I’ll let you meet up with another person about your age, a girl, who is on the same journey as you. Maybe then you’ll get up to pace with the rest of them.”

  “Wait, what do you mean rest of them? The rest of who?” Seventeen demanded.

  “That doesn’t matter. Be at the Graveheart Cemetery at Midnight tonight. You will meet up with Fifteen there. Good Luck.”

  “Wait,” Seventeen started. But it was too late. Marcus had already hung up.

  Fifteen. Seventeen. Marcus. He was so confused. So there are more of them? At least seventeen, if not more.

  Chapter Four

  Seventeen waited in the cemetery for number fifteen. From what Marcus said, Fifteen is a girl.

  It was five past midnight, and there was no sign of her. Seventeen had been in the cemetery since a quarter after eleven. He felt like he could run a marathon. He had a good dinner with the money from the Leader, and he had taken a nap in a car that was on a used car lot and with this new information, he was pumped and ready to go.

  “Are you Seventeen?” Somebody behind him said.

  Seventeen spun around and saw a girl standing there. From the faint light that was coming from the moon, he could tell that she was around his age; she had red hair with bright green eyes. They were so bright that he could see them, even though it was dark out. She had a tomboyish look about her. She was fit, but dirty, and she looked completely exhausted. But, he figured that’s how he looked just a couple of days ago. He wondered how long it was since she slept.

  “Yeah, are you Fifteen?” He asked.

  “Yep,” She said. “I guess you’re my partner now.”

  Seventeen shrugged. “What all do you know?” He asked.

  “Well, you like to get straight to the point. I guess I won’t waste your time.” She sat down on the ground. Seventeen did the same. “About three weeks ago some men came by my house. They took my family, and told me to start running, and if I tried to contact the police or anybody that they’d kill my family. So I started running.”

  “After about five minutes, I called the police. I couldn’t believe what was going on. I didn’t know where I was going, or why I was running. The police found me, but these guys pulled up in a black van and killed the officers. They got out and started chasing me. I ran, and ran, and ran. They never stopped coming. One day, I would be safe and the next, they would find me, and I would start running again. So on and so forth.”

  “Then one day I managed to separate them and I managed to knock one out. I took everything in his pockets, including his cell phone, and I called the only number that was on it. I talked to a man named Marcus, and he told me to be here at the cemetery today at this time to meet up with you, Seventeen. This was about a week ago.”

  Seventeen sat there for a moment, and then he told her his story. “So, they knew that we would be here.” He said when he finished. “He must have sent the Leader to be killed. He knew that I would get his number. Why are they chasing after us? What do they want with my family?”

  “Our families,” She retorted. “I’ve asked these questions a million times. But, Marcus said that you would have an SD card on you. He said that there were answers on it. We should head to a library and check out what’s on it.”

  “It’s past midnight, the library is closed. We’ll have to go tomorrow morning.” Seventeen began to stand up. Fifteen reached up and he helped her stand.

  “No, we don’t.” She said as she brushed the dirt off her pants.

  “What do you mean?” He asked.

  “I’m what you would call and expert at these things.” She smirked.

  “What things?”

  “Breaking and entering.” She said as she turned around and walked off.

  Chapter Five

  Seventeen and Fifteen were crouching outside the library. Seventeen was wondering how in the world they were possibly going to get in.

  “You see that tree over there?” Fifteen asked pointing at a tall tree that was beside a window leading into the library. “I bet I can climb it. I’ll run in and steal a laptop, and then I’ll meet you at the front door.”

  Seventeen thought about it for a moment. There were so many things that could go wrong, but it was their only option. “Alright, but do it quickly. There’s probably an alarm in there.”

  Fifteen silently ran to the tree and climbed it. “Give me five minutes.” She harshly whispered down to Seventeen.

  Seventeen went and stood in the front door, waiting for Fifteen. He was excited at the prospect of learning something about the people who were chasing him.

  He hardly finished that thought, when the very people who were chasing them suddenly appeared.

  Two tall, muscled men dressed in nothing but black and wearing trenched coats silently came walking towards him. Seventeen began looking around; there was no way to escape. They were heading right for him. Besides, he couldn’t leave Fifteen here by herself. They were getting closer.

  Fifteen feet.

  Ten feet.

  He remembered the gun.

  Five feet.

  He pulled it out of his pants, and pointed it at them. “Stop!” He screamed.

  Just then, the glass doors that were the entrance to the library exploded. Fifteen came out of nowhere and tackled one of them. She quickly got up and punched him right in the temple, and he went crumbling to the ground. The other one pulled out a gun and pointed it at her.

  Bang! The gun went off.

  Fifteen reached for her chest, but there was no blood.

  Seventeen had shot the man. He went straight to the ground. Fifteen and Seventeen looked at each other with shocked expressions on their face.

  “You saved me.” Fifteen said panting.

  Seventeen just looked at her. His chest was heavy and it was hard for him to breath. He felt his legs begin to weaken and he went to the nearest bush and threw up.

  When he was through, he went back to Fifteen. “I set off an alarm.” She said as she ran back to w
hat remained of the entrance of the Library, retrieving the laptop. “We gotta go.”

  “How did you do that?” Seventeen said pointing at the Library doors.

  “I had a grenade.”

  “A grenade?”

  “A grenade.”

  “How did you get a grenade?”

  “Ummm,” She said awkwardly. “I know a guy.”

  “A guy? What’s his na-” But he could not finish his sentence. Cops filled the parking lot one stood up behind his door and yelled into a megaphone, “Put your hands up!”

  “I’m gonna need some back-up.” Said his partner into his radio as he pulled his gun and pointed it at Seventeen.

  Seventeen realized that he still had the gun in his hand. With one dead body and another unconscious one, it was not looking good. Seventeen placed the gun down, and the both of them put their hands up.

  Book Two “Caught” Coming Summer 2011

  About The Author

  Logan Rutherford is a 16-year-old who developed a passion for reading and writing at a young age. He lives in Texas with his parents, five sisters, and one brother…and a few dogs. Learn more at his blog: existentialbacon.wordpress.com

 

 

  Logan Rutherford, Runner (The Runners, Book One)

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