Page 2 of Meet Odin

Boy,Age16

I was standing in the alleyway watching rich people walk down the street, like they didn’t have two shits to give. They would never know what it was like to be homeless, living in any dark corner they could find, making friends, and trading skills.

I had been dumped off at an orphanage when I was too young. I couldn’t remember my parents, and the nuns were more concerned with discipline than finding out where I came from. I learned early on that it was easier to go unnoticed. Most tended to ignore the silent kid with the baby face.

Two years ago, I had had enough. The food sucked, the dorm fights were nightly, and the nuns misquoted scripture to serve their own agenda. It was the first escape I had ever planned. I walked right out the front doors and vanished. They never came looking for me.

I went back to watching the people on the street.

Too short. I would have to bend over to pickpocket.

A woman with a stroller. Could be the nanny, and she was probably just as poor as I was.

A couple. I watched them enter the jewelry store. I needed cash, not the beatdown he'd give me to protect her.

An older man with silver hair in a suit. Jackpot!

I walked to the back of the alley and entered the store to my left. I was in here enough that the employees knew me. When they had caught me a few times, the owner had asked for a percentage of my scores. It was the price to eat. Pretending to be a shopper, I made my way through the store and out the front door. Turning to the right, I could still see my mark. My mouth started to salivate with the thought of dinner. I walked with my head down, and my hat pulled low over my brow. I could hear his measured steps approaching me.

Five steps away.

Four.

Three.

Two.

One.

I bumped his shoulder with mine and reached for his wallet.

“Sorry, sir,” I said and kept walking. The wallet was safely secured in my pants pocket.

I told myself to act normal.

“Boy,” he called after me in perfect Swedish. Fuck!

Don’t turn around. Think of dinner.

“I know you can hear me, and I would like my wallet,” he said to my back. “If you’re going to pickpocket, you should have gone for my watch. It’s worth more.”

Aw, fuck. How did I get out of this one? I slowly turned around and made a “Are you talking to me?” face. Maybe if I played innocent, he wouldn’t call the police. He’d have to press charges, but at least I’d have a bed and a warm meal. Decisions. Decisions.

Still not saying a word, I met his gaze. His eyes were blue, but they had a weird shine to them, like he was excited. My instincts screamed that something was off. Could I outrun him?

“Come here,” he said to me. “You’re not in trouble. Keep the cash.” He smirked at me.

I didn’t move. I had never been in this position before.

“Your name, boy?”

“Nunya.” It was easier than telling him I didn’t know my birth name, and I had been called boy most of my life.

He analyzed me from head to toe. “I think I shall call you Thor.”

I didn’t see the resemblance. I was a skinny blonde who hadn’t eaten in a few days. There was no way I’d pass for Thor.

He continued to scan me. “No, that won’t do.” He was talking to himself, and I almost took off running. Maybe he was crazy, and this was just a way to lure me in.

---