the killing of a sacred deer - carl grimes

XIV

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xiv.

are you lonesome tonight?
"is your heart filled with pain? shall i come back again?"

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I hate this.

Truly.

I left my jail cell.

But it put her in one.

And now she's locked in the basement beneath my house. The only alternative option my father could think of.

I stand in the doorway, at the bottom of the stairs, as they hurl accusations back and forth in a vehement argument of two people that believe they are in the right.

"Well, if you hadn't slaughtered a whole community of people in their sleep, I wouldn't have such an issue with you."

"Your people are thieves and murderers."

"Correction. I'm a thief and a murderer. They just benefit from it."

"You're a puppet. I'm having a hard time believing you're really the one in charge out there."

"Ricky, did you got to college?"

"What—Uh, yes—"

"—Then you should have your degree rescinded if you're still this fucking stupid."

Finally, my father throws his hands up. "I'm done with your games."

It is Lucy's turn to speak, a small mutter from under her breath: "I could say the same thing, motherfu-"

"Stop-Jesus Christ-just stop." I say from where I stand. "Both of you. Dad—"

But then Lucy had to open her mouth and cut me off, starting off a whole new chain of argumentative sport between them. It's like neither knew when to stop.

"Yeah, Dad, why don't you go screw off and stop pissing me off." It's amazing how bold she is despite the fact this man was holding a gun to her head with every intention of killing her less that fifteen minutes earlier. "Take notes from your baby boy and learn to be a decent human being instead of a raging cunt, maybe."

"Watch your mouth." His dad snarled out.

"Wash my mouth?"

"I said 'WATCH'—"

"—Like, wash it out with soap—?"

"—I said 'WATCH your mouth'—"

"—I can say whatever I want. If I want to call you a cunt I'm going to—"

"—You are being difficult and you are living on borrowed time, I'd get my act together if I were you—"

"—Oh, you got me. I'm so scared of whiny, little, piss baby Rick."

"—Shut up. What the Hell is wrong with you?"

"What's wrong with me? What's wrong with you? Somehow, you've deluded yourself into believing that you're the innocent one here but you were the one who threw the first stone unprovoked and I have been more than lenient with y'all. Or, is it that you want things to be fair? Okay, let's keep score, there were—What? Maybe fifty people at the outpost, I think it was fifty-four—and, of course, can't forget the two men your son killed when he broke into my home. Alright so fifty-six, plus give a few for the random, sporadic killings that you haves have perpetrated. Let's just say sixty, I think that's a good number. Compared to the maybe five people of yours. I'm even including Sasha in that number, even though that wasn't my fault. See? I am more than fair." She gave her hands a clap. "Alright, Rick. Chop-chop. Line up fifty-five of your people and I'll have them gunned down one by one. Then we'll be even. How does that sound?"