Demons in the Jungle

Chapter 5

  It was exactly what you'd expect in this sort of situation. Nevertheless, it was kind of unbelievable to see with my own eyes. The prisoners inside the cages were bruised and battered, covered in dirt and possibly their own waste. They were almost exclusively men, but I saw a couple of women here and there. All of the caged prisoners wore rags that barely covered them, and their eyes, sunken and hollow, stared at Amy with a look of pure, feral terror. Several guards circled around the place, rifles loose in their hands as they watched the cages.

"Here we have them, Tommy." Amy announced, grinning as he spun around and gestured with a dramatic hand. "My little city of pain. Last stop for all the damned souls. Take your pick."

I blinked and looked around again. None of the imprisoned were looking at me, and now their eyes were leaving Amy, too. They all cast their eyes down, at the ground. I looked over my shoulder, at Debra, doing a double take. Her entire stance had changed, her eyes wide as she watched the cages, her body instinctively drawing closer to mine. She was afraid, all of a sudden. Very afraid.

I took a step forward, clearing my throat before I spoke shakily. "Um...what exactly have they done?" I asked. "You know, to deserve being here?"

Amy smirked, crossing his arms and strolling around the cages. "Oh, let's see. Murder." He pointed to a man nearest. "Rape." He pointed to another. "Double murder. Drug dealer."

"And they're all criminals?" Deb asked in a quiet voice. "Every one of them?"

"Every single one of these people has done unspeakable things, my dear." Amy assured her. "Why, just the batch we brought in today, their dossiers would turn your stomach." He gestured to one end of the area, where a pair of guards were now herding in more prisoners, their hands bound behind their backs, their mouths gagged. They were being pushed into cages by the butt of the guards' rifles, quickly locked up and given shouting commands in Portuguese.

I heard a muffled sound at my side, and looked to see a man in one of the cages staring at me, attempting to say something through his bonds. But it was hopeless; even without the gag, I doubt I would have even understood him.

"What's that, my dear boy?" Amy asked suddenly, stepping toward the cage. He drew his pistol suddenly and rapped it against the metal of the cage. "What'd you say, you little bastard!?" He all but roared into the cage.

The man scrambled backward immediately, shouting a muffled but obvious apology into the gag in his mouth, eyes wild as he pushed himself into the back of the cage.

"I'm sorry, mate, but I don't like the way you are looking at me!" Amy screamed, sticking his head into the bars and baring his teeth. "Shut the fuck up!" Amy screamed into the cage. "Shut the fuck up! Shut up! Shut up!"

The man finally fell quiet, and Amy stood up straight, adjusting his jacket. "That's better." He said, looking back at me briefly. "Sometimes you have to be firm with them, you know?"

I nodded carefully, trying to keep my face neutral. Behind me, I could hear Deb's breathing increase, a panicky tone entering it. I leaned toward her as Amy went back to pacing amongst the cages. "Calm down, Deb." I hissed to her. "This is not a place where you want to-"

My words were cut off as one Amy's men shouted out, drawing everyone's attention. I gasped as I saw one of the new arrivals sprinting away from the cages, toward the exit of the fenced-in area, stumbling a little, his hands still bound. "Grab him!" Amy called, his voice surprisingly calm. "Don't shoot him, just grab him!"

Amy's men took off, two of them running after the escapee and trying to tackle him to the ground. One leaped, but fell short, and I saw Amy sigh and roll his eyes. He then casually reached up, retrieved a knife from his jacket, and held it by the blade. He aimed carefully, and then flung it forward, where it whistled through the air and then embedded itself in the man's calf. He went down fast, and the two guards caught up, restraining his arms and legs. He struggled, but one of the guards drove the butt of his rifle into the man's gut, hard, and he was dragged, limp, back to the cages.