23

"Where'd your pet go?"

"I don't know. She goes where she wants, like me."

The time's fed girl's in the process of trying each skeletal key in the cage's cross shape pad lock with her thinly blade cut, sticky fingers. Thumbprints of blood. Her hands are red like the apparition of Lady Macbeth's insanity.

"You ain't going where you want anymore, bitch. Not now. You're gonna let me loose and help me kill that fucking maniac who locked me'n here."

"You don't say, fucker. I'm looking to kill him, too."

"You've crossed paths. You know him? What's his name?"

"David Cain. He murdered my whole family. I thought I killed the Hecate fuckate when I blew up his home. I guess not."

The man snort laughs and she spits and drops a useless key and picks up another.

"What's your name, witch?"

"My name is like everyone else's. Time's fed."

The man chortles and grunts.

"Ok, whatever you say, time's fed. I'm Henry. I haven't got much ammo left but I'll have enough for you if you try anything."

She looks up at him while fiddling with the key in the rusty gray, crucifix shape, pad lock. He's young but old. Salt and pepper and thinly sturdy. He'd make a good fuck buddy if he wasn't him and she wasn't her.

She notices a silhouette of a body behind Henry. Like someone's sitting up against the corner of the cage with their head down, sleeping.

"Who's that?"

"That's Ned. Ned's dead."

"What happened to him?"

"My Got, bitch, whatcha think. He got bit and I had to waste a bullet on him."

"How should I know anything about how he died?"

How does he know if Ned's really dead? If he's what might've been, a bullet won't do too much. Maybe this guy just killed him. A vendetta or something.

"Because it's your fault he got bit, bitch. With all that calling and then my people freaking out and singing like a bunch of bait for a slaughter, everything went to shit and I blame you."

Empathy is a trap she's not going to find herself caught in with this man. He hasn't baited it well enough with his words so far.

I don't believe him but I'll go along.

"So, Henry. You'll have to forgive me if you want out and if you want help killing David Cain. If you want my help, there's promises that need meaning."

"Fuck you. You're forgiven. I wasn't much a fan of my community anyway."

Yeah, he's a liar and a murderer.

"I know how you feel about that."

"While we hunt, I promise I won't put you down like the rabid bitch you're."

I don't believe you.

"There will be other words you'll need to mean as we go, Henry. My friend who's ahead of me will see to it."

The key in her hand twists and the padlock falls apart. She pulls the ancient rusty metal through the holes of the cage bars. A metal plate drops on its hinges. She pulls a two by four from behind the opening of the plate and slams the cut of wood to the floor. The cage door creaks upon its hinge and she stands up. Backs away. The man walks out, pointing his rifle in her face like a Neanderthal coming out of time's frozen forehead world. He lowers the rifle.

"Well, now, time's fed. Let's hunt us some David Cain."