Escaping death

Chapter 4

I plan to escape this, I do. The cuffs twist and hurt my skin, it burns, red. I watch as the thin layers of flesh rips open surely under the stainless steel, wincing in pain and grinding my teeth. 

"You going there too?" I ask the guy in the clean-cut suit. He flashes me his pearlie-white; for a moment light seemed to reflect of these and scarred my eyes. 

"It's part of my job." He does this weird thing with his brows and looks away.

"Okay then, tell me. How does this -" Gesture. "-whole thing work." I knew the answer. What I am really looking for, is someone to talk to. Following the recent mass of events I felt every little drop of humanity in me had diminished. I need to know I could still communicate with the human race. With all the hate for the unworthy president-how he disgraced me, treated me as if I were an unsightly piece of junk- I wasn't sure I could still be called upon as a functional human at all. Sure, I ate and I slept, but did I really feel, at all?

"For a sixteen year old, you don't really act like one." He snorts. I am pretty sure he was referring to the way I spoke.

A temptation to punch him grew over me. See what I mean? 

"That's because when you live in an environment; society, this tough and chaotic, you learn to develop a mature mentality at a younger age. A wall to protect yourself from getting hurt from those judgemental freaks out there, you know?" The president, obviously. "Not like I'd trust you to know that, suit."

"Listen, its not all what you made out. People just assume working for the government means well-fed and a big house. Truth is, I earn just as much as you do---" "---- I'm not working." I barge in rather rudely. "----whatever,okay, your parents. Believe me, my job is exactly the same as theirs. Only exception-except much, much  more glamourous." 

"Whatever." I roll my eyes, fully annoyed. But wait.

I fumble with my last, only possession. A beautiful golden swan bracelet, crafted by the best in town. A family heirloom, one might say.

"Uh, guy."

"Tony."

"Okay fine. Tony, can I offer you a deal? Take a look." I strigten my arm, allowing the bracelet to fall smoothly from underneath my sleeve and slide down my blood red, cut wrist. 

"Worth at least three hundred cands." It made me feel... special to think that I might possess something so valuable.

"Enough to feed a family of five for half a year. Help me, this shall be yours."

It was a sad thing to do, really, but no guilt came rushing through my veins the minute after I spat the deal out. If my mother was here to witness this 'cruel' act, she'd bury me alive. But I'd take that anyday rather than getting hung alive by my least favourite person in the world.

"I'm listening."

"Okay, so you in?" I ask, my breath hardly catching up with all the excitement. Adrenaline pumped and I couldn't help but break into a smile, despite the terrible, obvious situation I was in.

"Depends. What is it?" His eyes look as if they were going to pop out anytime soon.

Excessive curiousity kills the cat.

"You help me escape death."