Animal Nature

Chapter 8

Mrs. Lupien hung up the phone and turned to her son. "You can't avoid her forever."

"I know, Mom," said David. His eyes drifted to the refrigerator and his stomach growled.

"When are you going to tell her?"

"When I'm ready," David snapped. Mrs. Lupien flinched at his tone. He ran a hand through his hair. "Sorry. I just have to figure out what to tell her."

"Tell her what you told the police."

"Shy's my best friend. I can't lie to her."

"Well, next time she calls I'm not going to lie to her, either."

"Fine," David said. He watched his mother stalk out of the room, then moved over to the refrigerator and opened the door.

A variety of smells greeted him, but those he smelled strongest and which made his mouth water were coming from the deli meats drawer. He yanked it open and dug his hands into the packages of sliced ham and roast beef. His fingers fumbled opening the plastic wrappers.

He had a fistful of roast beef in his mouth when his mother returned to the kitchen.

"David, did you feed the dog?" She stopped and stared. "What are you doing?"

David tried to swallow the mouthful of meat.

"Are you eating meat?"

"I—" he started, then swallowed, feeling heat burn his cheeks. "I had a craving."

"You haven't eaten meat in two years."

"I know. I forgot what it tastes like."

Mrs. Lupien folded her arms. "And what about the poor, innocent animal that was abused and slaughtered inhumanely for that meat, half of which I'll probably throw away?"

David shrugged. "I guess I have a slightly different view of animals after what happened."

His mother raised an eyebrow before walking away.

David looked down at the roast beef in his hand.

An innocent animal had died for this. He'd read all about it in the PETA magazine he subscribed to. How baby calves were kept in stalls so small they couldn't turn around, how cattle were fed so many hormones to continually produce milk that children who drank that milk were going into puberty earlier. Last year he'd joined in a protest against companies that tested their products on animals.

But that was last year. Right now David wished the meat in his hands was fresh and bleeding.

He rolled the rest of the roast beef into a tube and ate it in two bites.

Then he opened up the package of ham.