Chapter 1: Orphaned

"Mom! Mommy? Wake up, mommy!" a shrill voice rang in the air. Sirens blared, the dead bodies of the boy's mother and father lay prone on the asphalt. "Dad? Dad, mom won't wake up! Dad?"

"Shut up Clint!" A kick silenced the seven-year-old and his twelve-year-old brother scowled.

"But Barney," an urgent whisper escaped the little boy.

"I said shut up!" Another kick ensured that Clint wouldn't speak another word. Barney rummaged through the wreaked of the hit and run. He grabbed the drugs his father had been about to sell. Even at twelve, Barney had been helping his father in both drug dealing and abusing the youngest Barton for two years. Cop cars and medics pulled up and Barney threw the drugs into the river before anyone could see. "Now you don't say anything about the drugs do you hear? Or I'll give you a beating you'll never forget." A defiant glare met him but a raised hand made him nod quickly.

A cop lady ran over to the two boys. "Are you alright?"

Barney let out a fake sob, "Mom and dad? Are they dead?"

The cop didn't reply, "Let's get you two checked out." She led the two boys over to the ambulance as medics rushed to perform CPR on the two adults. They checked Barney first and gave the okay, but when they lifted Clint on the table he let out a whimper of pain. The medic lifted the boy's shirt and then motioned another medic over.

"This is a nasty bruise, I wouldn't be surprised if it damaged the rib." The second medic declared.

"Yes, but look at the shape." The first medic frowned. "It looked like a shoe. That didn't come from the crash. He was beaten." They conversed a while longer, but Clint managed to wiggle off the table. He tried to make a dash for it when his brother grabbed his wrist and dragged off at a run. "Hey! Come back!" The medic shouted but the boys dodged and weaved and escaped into an alley a few blocks away.

Barney finally let go of his wrist and Clint bent over to catch his breath when a kick sent him sprawling. "You just had to open your big mouth!"

"I didn't…" A punch silenced Clint cry of protest. He tried to defend himself, but Barney dodged easily. Luckily for Clint, Barney was smart and knew an injured Clint was a useless Clint. After a few more kicks he dragged him to his feet.

"Right now, I'm all you've got. So you do as I say." Barney hissed. "If you get hurt, you don't make a sound, you don't let anybody know. Your life depends on it." He dropped his little brother in a bundle on the ground and started pacing and thinking out loud. "We need to lie low for a few months. Maybe we can join a gang or something. We'll need to steal food, pickpocket and run. The stealthier we are the better chance we have at survival." He muttered and grumbled to himself, then turned to Clint. "We need to keep moving, come on." He yanked his brother to his feet and dragged him behind as they continued into the maze of alleyways of the city, and into the cold darkness.