STUCK

Image by Christine Renney

As he rounded the corner, Connor noticed the broken glass, glinting beneath the street light a little further ahead.  In order to avoid it, Connor moved out onto the road but turned to study the damaged window.  It was cracked at all four corners but the hole at the centre was quite small.  He was surprised the jagged aperture had managed to cause such a mess, had created so many fragments.  The curtains at the window had been drawn across and, stepping back onto the pavement, Connor peered through the broken glass. 

There was money on the window sill, rolls of banknotes, each tightly bound with an elastic band.  There was a lot of money piled on top of the narrow ledge but he couldn’t get at it, at least not easily.  He considered pushing in the rest of the glass – it wouldn’t take much; a nudge here and there with his elbow would do it.  But of course, it would be noisy and although it was late there were still lights showing in the windows of the houses on both sides of the street.  It was unlikely that he would be able to smash the window and grab the cash and get away without being seen. 

No, Connor needed to act stealthily and quickly.  He rolled up his sweatshirt sleeve and straightened his hand and pushed his fingers through the hole and, reaching in, he grabbed one of the rolls.  But when he began to pull his arm back, he felt it hit the glass.  Connor could feel the jagged edges digging into his flesh and beginning to panic, he watched the blood, his blood, as it dripped down the glass.  With his free hand, he pushed at the pane but it would not give and Connor realised that he was stuck.  He was still holding the roll of cash in his fist and flexing his fingers he let it drop and the glass exploded.  It sounded like a gunshot and hundreds of glass bullets fell at his feet. 

Straightening up, Connor grasped at his bloody arm.  Figures appeared in the windows above and he listened to the car alarms as they started to wail around him.  The street had suddenly lit up and people were emerging from their homes.  Connor didn’t want to face it but, reluctantly, he raised his head.