Mistaken Identity (Prologue)
I have been working on a new story idea. Let me know what you think or what you want to see, and I might add it.
As I walked home from another mediocre day at work, I grumbled about my boss and where on his body he could shove his ‘volunteered overtime.’ The late-night chill made me shiver as a gust of end-October wind crawled up the inside of my jacket. Looking at my watch, I grumbled at the numbers as they pointed toward eleven. It was always peaceful walking this late at night. Usually the streets are crowded with people rushing around to get home. I crossed my arms to stave off the cold as best as possible, dreaming of the hot bath I would take. I looked further down the sidewalk, seeing the familiar entranceway to my apartment. I sighed in relief as I reached the front door, my reflection staring back at me as I slid the key in, the day in the kitchen wreaking havoc on my black panther fur; as I turned the handle, I noticed a masked face behind me, a firm hand squeezed my shoulder as another large hand wrapped around my mouth, smothering the scream I let out.
“Boss wants to have a little… chat with you.” The deep voice said in my ear as a felt bag slipped over my head.
“What boss?” I mumbled as the big guy still held my mouth firmly. Suddenly, I felt a firm thump, making me see stars. I woke up an unknown amount of time later, laying on a hard floor and hearing a car engine. I groaned as my head was pounding from the impact; I moved a little, making the realization that I was also tied up.
“He is awake.” I heard a different guy say, his voice not as deep.
“Good, we are almost there.” The deeper voice replied. I felt my heart thumping hard, thoughts flashing through my head, trying to figure out who was angry with me enough to have me kidnapped. After a few minutes, I felt the vehicle make a sudden turn, sliding me across the floor and making me slam into a wall, making my captors chuckle.
“What is going on? Why did you kidnap me?” I asked, hoping for something.
“Shut up, you know exactly what you did. And now you will pay dearly for your mistake.” The deeper voice answered. I felt my fur stand on end as the vehicle came to a stop and the engine cut out.
“We are here.” The not-so-deep voice said. I heard the doors open and the vehicle shake as the two got out, feeling my adrenaline pumping as I listened to the heavy footsteps trail to the back where I was. The back door opened as a cool breeze washed over me; I suddenly realized my jacket was gone, and so were my wallet and keys. I felt rough hands grab my ankles and swiftly yank me out of the vehicle, making me land on the gravel with a thump. Two sets of hands grabbed my arms and pulled me to my feet, forcing me to walk to my unknown destination.
“A-am I going to die?” I asked, fearing what the answer would be.
“Guess we will find out,” the deep voice replied with a menacing chuckle that made me feel sick. We walked for what seemed like forever, the ground going from solid pavement to the crunching of frost on grass. We finally stopped, and the two brutes forced me to my knees on the dirt, the cold seeping through my pants as the frost melted. I almost screamed as the bag was yanked off my head. I was met with the sight of a well-dressed male tiger standing before me, wearing a scowl on his face. I felt myself trembling as he stood there staring at me. I finally looked down and noticed a deep rectangular hole in the ground directly before me. I looked back up to see the tiger pulling out a silver Colt 1911; I started breathing hard as the tiger silently looked over the pistol.
“So, you thought you could just disappear? You thought that we wouldn’t find you eventually?” the tiger said, slightly raising his voice at the second question as he looked up at me.
“S-sir, I have no idea who you are,” I said, making him growl.
“Do you think I am stupid?” the tiger yelled at me as he aimed his pistol at my chest, making me flinch.
“N-not at all, sir,” I said as he sat down so that his legs were in the hole; he stared at me for a while longer.
“Listen, Mike. I gave you a chance of a lifetime. I would have forgiven all your debt, but you ran like a coward, " he said with disdain. Hot tears streamed down my face as the confusion got worse.
“W-what are you talking about? My name is James; Mike is my twin brother.” I replied with the knowledge of how dumb I sounded.
“I am so sorry. I guess my associates got mixed up with who they were grabbing. I will have them drop you off as soon as possible, " the tiger said, getting up and walking behind me.
“Really? That would be great; I have to work tomorrow.” I said with relief, which was short-lived, as I heard him cock his pistol and press it to the back of my head.
“You actually thought I would fall for a pathetic excuse like that?” he spat.
“All you had to do was marry my daughter. Your debt would have been forgiven, and we would not have to endure all this. Any last words?” The tiger said with a snarl.
“I will marry your daughter; I swear I won’t run.” I pleaded.
“Too late for that,” he replied. Time seemingly inched by as the cold steel was pressed into my head, my heart thumping hard. It was all I could do to keep from staring into my grave; off in the distance, a car passed by, illuminating the scene in an eerie glow. I heard a stomach-churning ‘click’ followed by my captor uttering, “Piece of junk, sorry about that, my gun jammed. One moment… “WOULD ONE OF YOU USELESS MEAT-HEADS GIVE ME A WORKING GUN? This is embarrassing,” he said with a lighthearted chuckle as he threw his gun at one of his thugs.
“Please let me live; I will do anything.” I pleaded, feeling hot tears run down my cheek.
“Fine, your tears have cracked my cold, dead heart; you may leave.” He said, stepping back. With relief, I scrambled to my shaking feet; I stumbled as I found my footing. Suddenly, there was an ear-shattering bang; I looked back at my captor to see the tiger holding a revolver with smoke pouring out of the barrel. I felt sick as I felt like I was punched hard in the gut; I looked down to see a deep red stain growing on my shirt over my stomach. The tiger was watching with an evil grin on his face as he laughed at my misfortune. I felt a deepening numbness crawl from my toes and up my legs, making me collapse to my knees again; I looked at the tiger as his foot came towards me, colliding with my chest and kicking me backward into the pit. I landed with a thud; my breathing reduced to that of a fish out of water.
The tiger stood over me as I held my gut, hoping to survive. I mouthed words my breath wouldn’t afford me; I could feel deep thumping in my chest as my heart worked harder. My movements slowed as I felt the first shovel of dirt cascade over me, my body growing weak as I stopped shivering. My vision was going blurry as the tiger started lighting my belongings on fire; I spotted flashing red and blue lights, making the group quickly disperse, leaving me in the hole. I felt the faint hope that I would be saved; the feeling disappeared as the lights disappeared into the early morning. I convulsed as my last breath spilled from my maw. All that was left was the stillness of the night as my body stared up at the sky. Suddenly, I heard footsteps approaching; it sounded like a horse as it snorted. The sound stopped, and a dull thump sound followed by the crunching of footsteps in frost.
“Looks like you could use a hand, friend.” The gruff voice called out as a figure loomed over my grave; the man kneeled and extended a gloved hand toward me. Dumbfounded, I reached out and grasped his offered hand; he heaved and pulled me free.
“I don’t understand, sir. How am I alive?” I asked. He stopped moving and peered into the pit.
“You left something in the pit.” He replied. I looked back into the grave, and my lifeless body was lying in the dirt.
“I am… but why am I talking to you?” I asked. I felt his gloved hand grab my forearm, and I looked at him as he removed his cowboy hat, revealing a grey wolf, and mocked a bow.
“Buster’s the name, soul reaping’s the game.” He said as now I could see the bullet hole in his head.
“So… I am dead,” I mainly spoke to myself.
“Yes, sir, thanks for catching up. I know it is hard to come to terms with, but if you don’t mind, we need to go, " he said while checking his pocket watch.
“But I shouldn’t be dead; they were after my brother,” I replied, feeling angry.
“Well, tell that to the bullet; it didn’t seem to care who you were, " he said. He grabbed my shoulder and snapped his fingers. Suddenly, I was standing with Buster in a brightly lit room with a desk and a chair on either side, looking more like an interrogation setup.
“Well, this is where I leave you. I've got a lot more souls to reap tonight, " he said as he let me go and disappeared before I could respond. I sat in one of the chairs as thoughts of what had happened raced through my head about the last few hours. I sat at the table, looking at my feet, and I jumped as someone cleared their throat. I looked up to see a white dragon sitting across from me; she had a large file on the desk and a pleasant smile.
“Nice to meet you, James; we have much to discuss.” She said as she opened the file.