Hiding

It was a perfect hiding place. A cubby hole maintenance closet behind two dark corridors, then behind a latched metal grate. In the shadows, the spot was invisible. Barron Spalding, lifetime petty criminal, had eyeballed the forgotten room for a couple of weeks. It seemed to be a ghosted subway space, perfect for his nefarious plans.

Forty-five and a career thief, Spalding was long past going to Confession. His life was a daily war of staying alive and out of jail. His tools were many. Pickpocket, bag switch, rolling drunks, and a few times, knife and mask. So far, he's never actually stuck anyone, but feels nothing when scaring his victims half to death.

It's been profitable, and he's only been caught twice, both times plea-bargained out. Back to his best skill, Aaron's only gotten better from experience. All he needed was a stash, a hiding place where he could disappear between his various robberies. This cubby hole was worth a try, he thought, if he's real careful.

Two weeks pass. So far, it's working like a charm. Aaron slid up the grate latch and jammed it into its holder, bending it slightly the first time, but it stayed up. Thru the dark corridor, he stepped into a small room, sometimes stretching out on the floor for the night. It was deafening loud at that area of the subway, but he could still sleep. No one came around, so he had complete privacy whenever he wanted.

One day, after successfully lifting two wallets, and then an easy purse snatch from a terrified senior, Spalding was back in his little, stuffy cubby hole, out of breath from running. As he rested, nearly snoozing, outside a random but fateful quirk of extremely bad fortune occurred in precisely three seconds. Possibly from the constant vibration of the passing subway trains, the jammed metal door latch came loose, and dropped down horizontal again, effectively locking the corridor tight.

When Spalding eventually discovered his unlucky destiny, no doubt he yelled for help until he passed out, and the next few days must have been rough. Lifetime petty criminal Barron Spalding wasn't found until two months later, when a nearby pipe needed repair. And, that's how a perfect hiding place becomes a perfect tomb.