Second Chance

The frigid night grabbed Jake by the back of the neck and wouldn't let go. Turning up the frayed collar of his thin jacket seemed to make it worse. 'What's taking him so long?' he thought to himself. 'Standing out here and keeping an eye out for... what? Al just said to keep my eyes peeled but he wouldn't say for what.'

"Jus' make sure nuthin', and I mean nuthin', gets by youse", Al growled before he picked the lock on the dark brownstone. Turning as he entered he hissed "Nuthin'!"

Jake had no idea why he was here. Nancy was home all alone except for their newborn son. 'I should be home, not out here. I've never done anything like this before. I'm a writer. Why did I let him talk me into...' A crash from the upper window broke Jake's reverie and he started toward the front door when an eerie sound stopped him cold in his tracks. A laugh was crawling up Jake's spine as he backed toward the sedan parked just out of the glow of the streetlight. The sound wasn't quite human, maybe not even a laugh at all. Maybe...

A flash of light momentarily lit up the room and then a second flash followed by a crash. Silence took over the house for several moments, moments Jake couldn't move, couldn't breathe. Finally the door creaked open and Jake Somerville could see the gagged face of his cousin Al. As he began to move toward the door out of familial loyalty he felt an iron grip on his shoulder and froze. He turned his head to the left and saw a black clad hand with a fiery ring on the third finger glowing faintly.

"Go home, Jake Somerville. Never walk this path again or your son will know his father only through the bars of a cell." The voice turned Jake's blood to ice and he felt like he may pass out.

"But I can't leave..." he started to stammer only to have the sound of sirens cut through the frigid November air.

"Your choice. The weed of crime bears bitter fruit, Jake. If you stay you will find that crime does not pay." And with that the grip was gone and the sound of laughter mixed with the sound of the sirens growing louder. Casting one last glance at his cousin Jake slid over the hood of the car and climbed inside. Turning the engine over he floored the gas pedal and drove straight out of the high end neighborhood that he didn't belong in and all the way to the home he never should have left.

Pulling up to the rundown apartment building where his family was waiting inside, he turned off the engine and slumped in the seat. He still had no means of taking care the two most important people in his world. Out of frustration he pounded the dashboard, hard enough to pop the glove compartment open. Leaning over to close the door his eye caught a package that hadn't been there before. Grabbing the envelope Jake leaned back in the bench seat. A gasp escaped his lips as several thousand dollars spilled onto his lap. On top of the unexpected bonanza lay a white business card with the name Clyde Burke and a phone number to the New York Classic.

Breathing hard as his mind tried to grasp all of the this, he all of a sudden stopped breathing altogether as the sound of eerie laughter seemed to surround him and then fade to silence. Gathering up the cash Jake ran into the apartment building calling for Nancy. He may not know what the future held but he had been given a second chance and there wasn't even the shadow of a doubt that he wasn't going to let it slip away.