The blood drained from my face. I was laying out of half of the straps holding me to the metal bed, and I chewed part of the way through another. If that guard sees me, I'm totally screwed.
"Hello, Jack?" the guard called. I froze, staying as silent as possible.
Keys jingled and the doorknob rotated. Shit.
A big guy stepped in with two bags of McDonald's. Fear for my life quickly turned into confusion, and more than a little relief. The man looked at the bed, and looked at me, halfway out of my restraints. He smiled in admiration. "You've been busy!"
"Is that what I smelled when I was first shoved in here?" I pointed toward the bags he carried.
"The McDonald's? Yeah, probably. Ever since they started making the atorbastatus or whatever you call it... the cholesterol lowering generics... I've gone there for it. Can't afford much else. And the food's so cheap!" He looked at me, amazed.
I smiled. I still didn't know what he was doing here, but he was obviously more on my side than not. "You're a Cube guy, what are you doing talking to a guy who just tried to hotwire 300 cars?"
The smile crept from his face. "I'm not a 'Cube guy' anymore. Even for just janitor duty, they don't pay me enough. I can barely afford Micky D's, and I live in one of these cells! The corporation's cutting my wage like it's going outta style! I'm done with it. I'm letting everybody down here go, and then I'm runnin' away. My mom still has a house in the country and I haven't been able to see her for - well, since they started making cuts here. That's just not right!" His face was contorted into a pinkish fury.
He got out his keys and unlocked the two remaining straps. I grabbed my left shoe off the ground. "A thank you isn't enough, Peter. Starving down here is no way to die. Speaking of starving... mind if I buy a burger off of you?" I pulled out a fifty from the emergency pocket in my shoe.
"Deal!" His eyes lit up. "Come with me! You can hide in the trash bin and I can get you outta here!"
"Hello, Jack?" the guard called. I froze, staying as silent as possible.
Keys jingled and the doorknob rotated. Shit.
A big guy stepped in with two bags of McDonald's. Fear for my life quickly turned into confusion, and more than a little relief. The man looked at the bed, and looked at me, halfway out of my restraints. He smiled in admiration. "You've been busy!"
"Is that what I smelled when I was first shoved in here?" I pointed toward the bags he carried.
"The McDonald's? Yeah, probably. Ever since they started making the atorbastatus or whatever you call it... the cholesterol lowering generics... I've gone there for it. Can't afford much else. And the food's so cheap!" He looked at me, amazed.
I smiled. I still didn't know what he was doing here, but he was obviously more on my side than not. "You're a Cube guy, what are you doing talking to a guy who just tried to hotwire 300 cars?"
The smile crept from his face. "I'm not a 'Cube guy' anymore. Even for just janitor duty, they don't pay me enough. I can barely afford Micky D's, and I live in one of these cells! The corporation's cutting my wage like it's going outta style! I'm done with it. I'm letting everybody down here go, and then I'm runnin' away. My mom still has a house in the country and I haven't been able to see her for - well, since they started making cuts here. That's just not right!" His face was contorted into a pinkish fury.
He got out his keys and unlocked the two remaining straps. I grabbed my left shoe off the ground. "A thank you isn't enough, Peter. Starving down here is no way to die. Speaking of starving... mind if I buy a burger off of you?" I pulled out a fifty from the emergency pocket in my shoe.
"Deal!" His eyes lit up. "Come with me! You can hide in the trash bin and I can get you outta here!"
