Erik

Chapter seven

Erik's POV

The fire must have been bad. I could feel the heat from inside my cage. My master had been tending to the newest 'member of the family' as he put it, so I was being looked over by the two men who had found me in the apple tree that day. They had both been drinking and had obviously had too much because they hadn't locked my cage properly. I took this to my advantage, snuck out of my tent and bolted away from the freak show. I ran towards the lights of the town. It was dark and I didn't have a mask on so I hid in an alley.
"Round here" a mans voice said and I held my breath and hoped that they weren't coming to the alley.
"How many bottles do you have?" Said another man, who's voice I recognised. I froze. It was my master. I heard footsteps coming towards the alley where I was as they continued their conversation. I backed up as there torch light shone down the alley. I was almost at the end when I realised there was no end. There was only a brick wall. The torch got closer and so did the men. I backed up further and then there was a crash. I glanced to my right and saw I had knocked a rubbish tin over. The torch instantly shone on me.
"You!" My master cried "what do you think you're doing?"
He came towards me and grabbed me by the arm "get. Back. To where you belong! Now!" He shouted and punched me in the stomach. He was always so strong and his blow knocked me to the ground where I was welcomed to many kicks from him. I soon blacked out and later groggily woke up. Back in my cage. My master was standing over me with his whip and I then endured he worst beating I'd ever received the whole time I'd been at the freak show.
"I'll teach you to escape from me!" He shouted as the whip crashed down onto my back. "The nerve of you! You think someone would help you?" He cried "nobody would ever help you! You're just a freak, a monster!" The whip hit me multiple times. I don't know how long he beat me for but it was a long time. I had learned a long time ago not to cry when being struck. Or at all. But this time I did. I sat curled up on the floor and cried myself to sleep. I knew that if my life carried on this way, it would be a short one. I assumed that I would be treated like this by him or his workers for the rest of my life, and for two more torturous years, it did. Until one day a man saved me from everything.