It was eleven o’clock Thursday evening and I had just been released from my shift at the Durby Burger. The last bus route left fifteen minutes ago and I had no means of transportation. It was getting late, so in order to minimize my journey, I took a shortcut I used take as a child on my home from school. I took a quick left turn onto a back alley and picked up the pace.
The darkness engulfed me as I walked deeper and deeper into the long damp alleyway. My spine shivered with each howl of the wind, and with each step my shoulders grew stiffer and stiffer. Suddenly, a rattle of tin trash cans abruptly broke the tranquil silence. Immediately putting me in a fright, I darted to the nearest dumpster and hid myself the best I could.
With no clue as to what was going on, I sat there holding my breath, trying to be as quiet as possible. Another clash of trash bins occurred, but this one was followed by a sharp scream. It was the scream of a woman. Shortly after the next scream followed, but this one was muffled almost immediately. Trying not to draw attention to myself, I crept toward the edge of the dumpster to catch a glimpse of what was going on.
I saw a man around the age of thirty-five or thirty-six. This man was taller than the average man, covered in tattoos, and extremely muscular. He stood over a woman with his foot placed upon her chest. Her hair was tangled and knotted. The makeup from her face had run down her cheeks from the tears she had released. He kicked her several times and choked her with his bare hands. What I witnessed next was an act so disturbing that no one could fathom the distraught I experienced.
I watched him violate her. I watched him stroke her repeatedly in horror. I watched her suffer for what felt like hours, but truly only lasted for a few minutes. It took a while for me to gather up all of my courage and take action. As soon as I positioned myself to advance and help her, he pulled out a small item that glared in the illuminating moonlight. Before I could even make out what the object was, he struck down swiftly upon her neck with great force. Instantly blood oozed like water from the kitchen sink. He wiped the blood stained knife on her clothing and quickly fled from the scene.
So shocked by the event that had just taken place, I was paralyzed. I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t think. All I could do was simply look upon the dead body of the girl I could have saved.