date: 11.01.95
age: 15
grade: 10
rank: 06
A couple of months ago, at about 6:30 at night, (which was very dark at the time) I was walking down a side street, on my way home from school. I got about halfway home, when I saw the scene of a horrible accident. A motorist had hit a woman crossing the street, and there was blood everywhere. I edged my way through the crowd to get a closer look, and saw a man cradling a woman's lifeless body in his arms. I waited until the crowd had left, and the man had settled down, and I asked him what had happened. What he told me then is the story I'm going to tell you today.
The man's name was Ed Hadley, and he had a wife, but no children. That night he was home watching t.v. (which was a typical evening activity for him.) His wife was washing dishes. He cycled through the channels and decided to watch the news for a change. They said something about a serial killer in the upcoming story, so Ed stopped changing the channels.
"Hey honey, come in here," he said. "Did you hear this, about a serial killer?"
"No," she replied as she walked into the adjoining room. The show came back on, with a news story about a serial killer that had broken free from a state prison and had left a trail of murders, of over 20 people. His last victim was apparently from the neighboring town.
"Hey, that's getting pretty close to our area. I'm scared Ed," his wife said.
"Gee, maybe we should take some precautions," he said as he stood up and started walking around the room. She looked at him wide-eyed and said, "Yeah, we don't even have any alarm system."
"You know," Ed said, "I'll go pick one up right now, real quick. At least then we won't be sitting here, just waiting for something bad to happen.."
"Don't leave me here alone, with a serial killer loose," she said as she gripped his arm.
"Don't worry, I'll be back soon," Ed smiled as he grabbed his coat.
Ed got in his car and drove away. He started thinking about the serial killer, and wondering if he was truly a threat. It really didn't matter, the alarm was only necessary to put his mind at ease. He pulled up to Radio Shack and walked in.
He went over to the home alarm section and picked up the best looking alarm he could find. As he was looking at the different prices, a news break flashed across the televisions on the other side of the store. They said another murder was reported, committed by the same infamous serial killer, and the scene of the crime was now in their town. Ed was shocked. The newscasters suggested the residents keep all windows and doors locked. They should keep off the street and let the police handle the situation. Everyone in the store was in a state of panic. Ed rushed to the cashier and bought the nearest alarm system he could reach. He ran out of the store and drove away.
Apparently, Ed's wife had heard the news also, and nearly fainted with fright. She quickly turned the t.v. off, and tried to block out the bad news. She ran around the house and screamed, dreading the fact that she let Ed go out. She sat on the couch, and tried to calm herself down. She looked outside. It had gotten rather dark, and the rain was starting to pick up again. She turned her head at every sound she heard that cut the silence of the night. Suddenly, she heard window glass breaking from the kitchen. She jumped up, and was so scared she ran out of the house and down the street screaming.
Ed was on his way home. He thought of his wife, sitting at home, wondering where he was. He pushed on the gas, and was now speeding along very quickly. He pulled the alarm out of the bag, and fumbled around to get the instructions. With one eye on the road, and one on the directions, he tried to read how to install the new alarm. Although he looked back and forth, from the instructions to the street, he was not paying much attention to the road. The rain got thicker, and Ed was straining to see. His car slowly drifted to the right side of the sidewalk. Before he realized where he was headed, it was too late. For a split second, he saw a woman run in front of his car, then she hit the windshield and bounced off. Ed slammed on the brakes. He threw down the alarm, and ran out to see what had happened. The woman was lying face down in a puddle of water and blood. He turned her over and brushed the hair out of her face.
He was staring at the face of his wife.