The Wall

41

Moses felt pain in his back. The woman had hit him as hard as she could. He hadn’t done anything to either one of them. Maybe they knew the white woman in whose house he’d just been. Had she called them? Nonsense. Had they heard the screams? The distance was too far. He now had to get away from the outer wall, because there was only one way out of here. One which led away from the wall. One more leap, and he would return to the street to run. That was easier and would go faster.

A low hedge, stop, take the curve to the right, and slip between a house and a medium-height wall.

A female guard was walking toward him from the other side of the street. Shit. He came to an abrupt stop and ran back. The woman called out something. He took the next cut-through. Bad call. A sturdily built man stood there, grinning at him. He should have risked it with the woman. Although… You couldn’t be sure about anything these days. What he couldn’t do was stay put. He kept running and jumped at the man. Outstretched leg in the stomach. The guy collapsed and stayed on the ground. Moses kept running. Finally on the street. Turned left and continued running. Just don’t stop. A quick glance back. There were people. Not close.

Run.

He was sweating buckets.

Were these security guards carrying guns? Run, Moses thought. Just run.