Strangers and Shadows Read Online Free PDF Page B

ruins.
    Jack was about to ask the kid if he was alright, when he heard the sound of a foot slipping on the ladder below.  That sound was followed by another one, a sickening thud.
    “Shit!  Are you okay?” Jack called out, hurrying down the ladder.  The kid must have fallen.
    When Jack reached the bottom, he found the boy lying nearby, out cold, but still breathing.  Jack walked over to him and wondered if it was safe to move him, when the kid moaned.  “Hey, you alright?” Jack asked.  “Took quite a spill…”
    “Ughh...  my head...”
    “Here, let me have a look.”  Jack could barely see his hand in front of his face, let alone the kid’s head.  He gently examined his head and found a huge bump on the back of it.  His hands came away wet and slick.  Blood, most likely.   “How do you feel?  You’ve got a nasty little bump on your head, there.”
    “It hurts all over,” the kid moaned.
    “Can you move all your limbs?” Jack asked, helping the boy extend his arms and legs, checking for any breaks or fractures.
    “I think so.”
    “That’s a good sign.  What’s your name?”
    There was a long pause.  “Ummm... It’s ah... “ the kid was struggling.  “I can’t remember.”
    “Okay, that’s alright.  Kid it is , then,” Jack said, trying to keep the boy calm.  “What city do you live in?”
    “New York,” the kid answered quickly, without thinking.  “Why can’t I remember my name?”
    “I don’t know, but you hit your head pretty hard.  Sometimes your memory gets a little fuzzy when you hit your head like that.  It’s nothing to worry about , though, I’m sure it’ll come back to you.”  Jack was, in fact, sure of no such thing, but the last thing he needed was the boy to start panicking.  Fortunately, the kid seemed to be good to go.  Jack was impressed.  He couldn’t remember if he had been that tough as a kid, but he was pretty sure,  if he was honest, that he hadn’t been.
    On the streets above, Jack could hear other buildings as they tumbled down, shaking the tunnel walls.  Dust filtered down through unseen cracks.
    “Stay here.  I wanna check something out.”  Jack climbed back up the ladder and found the entrance was sealed tightly with debris.  “We’ll have to find another way out.  Do you think you can walk?”
    “Yeah, I think so.”
    “Alright then, let’s get a move on. Unless having rats for dinner is okay with you.”
    “Eckth! Rats?”
    Jack smiled in the darkness.  “Well, yeah… unless we find a Dunkin’ Donuts down here.  We’ll have to find a way to the street above.  Any idea how far to the next station?”  
    “It’s only a couple a blocks, but me and Bobby never went that far, he was always too scared.  So I don’t know if there’s a way out at the next station.”
    “ Great ,” Jack muttered. 
     The boy flinched at the edge in Jack’s voice. 
     “Sorry, Kid… I’m just a little stressed right now.”  He softened his voice, trying to reassure the boy.  “Now, what’s this about not being able to get out at the next station?”  
    “They filled in most of the old subway stations, that’s all.  The next one down might be one of the ones they filled in,” Kid said as they plodded along.  Suddenly the boy gasped, clutching his chest.  “My mom and dad… do you… think… are they gonna be okay?”
    Jack looked down at the boy in the dim emergency lights of the old subway tunnel, and saw him trying to hold back tears that couldn’t and shouldn’t be held back.  “I don’t know, Kid.  A lot of people died in the riot.”  Jack winced as he realized the words he’d just used.
    At first, all the boy heard was that a lot of people died, and he started crying, but when he realized what Jack had said, he instantly turned suspicious.  “What do you mean, in the riot ?”
    Jack could have swallowed his own fist, he was so angry at the slip of his tongue.  He couldn’t think of anything to