It was one of those oppressive summer days when the air felt like a wool blanket. Today was sluggish, and even the air appeared to have given up. People avoided the sun by staying inside. Asphalt bubbled in the heat, walkways shimmered, and the parking lot outside Maplewood Shopping Plaza was unnaturally quiet.
Lucas Reynolds, 23, had finished his shift at the tiny electronics repair business on the outside of town. He worked full-time and attended night school to study computer engineering. The routine was home, work, school, repeat.
He crossed the large, sun-drenched lot with his bag adjusted. Only a few automobiles were sweltering in the heat since most plaza shops were closed for remodeling. It was then he heard it.
The quiet, almost inaudible groan confused him at first. Whimper. He froze, studying the lot.
Then he heard it again…
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