Confined and Forgotten

(1)
Walking the lonely streets is not easy and is not for everyone especially not me. Eating from every trash bin and drinking from every puddle along the sidewalk hoping you will only catch a few itchy diseases but nothing fatal. I am a runaway walking these mean streets with no identification and no address tag branding me. For the first time in my short life I am truly free. This morning is like every other morning I eat a few scrapes then chew the fat with a few of the street corner bitches who have been living these corners and back alleys long before I even knew such things existed. I used to have a good life full of love and dreams but things change one day everyone just kind of forgot I existed so I left and the sad thing is I want to go home but my pride has his fingers wrapped tight around my collar pulling me deeper into the dark corners of the city.

(2)
Today was the day it all changed and became very real I got picked up which on the street is the worst thing that can happen no ID no freedom. Brutes piled out of the van flashlights waving and whistle screaming high hell. In a brief moment my family flicked into my eyes along with all the happiness and good times and how it was all being taken from me so easily with no remorse. A hulking man grabbed deep into my hair drawing blood under his fingernails all I could muster out of my mouth was a cry for help but no one came even the bitches on the corner and all my sidewalk friends abandoned me I guess it is true, I am my only friend out here and these streets will eat you alive if you’re not careful.

(3)
Thrown face first into the mobile jail with all of the other unlucky nightwalkers all screaming and yelling slurred profanities. Many of the faces in the van I do not recognize but there are a few I have seen before from my side of the tracks especially one in particular.

"Yo Mika remember me its Sly from 152 street behind Dot and Pops Diner" I yell loud above the other members of the van like kids on a school bus.

"Yea I remember you but it don’t matter none, me and you Sly got a one way ticket to the big house"

"Big House, what the hell is the Big House"

"The pen, lock up you know what I am talking about, jail my man we are going to jail throw away the key buddy we aint getting out any time soon"

(4)
For the remainder of the ride to the big house I tried my best to keep to myself sitting quite in the corner of the van watching as the rest of the crew barked at one another yelling and spitting at each other and slipping around in their own shit and vomit. I began to realize and maybe it was a little too late But I did not belong with these people I was nothing like them they were savages and I was once civilized. The man driving the van turned and faced us.

"Shut the fuck up or I will rip your puny little arms right off your fucking bodies!"

Then grabbed the volume on the radio and gave it a flick off his wrist and cranked the music to an obscene volume.

"Hey momma, look at me I’m on my way to the promised land. I’m on the highhhhhhhway to hell!"

Even a slum like me knew that song and I enjoyed that tone far more then ones of my jail house roommates.

(5)
We drove for what seemed like forever down the streets and through the lights around corners and deeper into the city limits until our destination at last came into sight. The driver slammed the van into park jolting everyone to the front and doggy piling on top of one another. The hulking man swung open the back doors and started grabbing and peeling us out of the van two by two. Everyone was gone except me and Mika and the screaming of the radio behind us. Finally the man came back for us grabbing both of us by our back legs and nails screeching and breaking off on the vans steel flooring. We were led through giant steel doors in a single file line marching to what may be our resting place for now and forever. The air smells of feces and is almost damp like you could taste it if you were to stick your tongue out. The warden every so often would stop and pop open a cell and toss one of us in it again two by two. Mika and I were thrown into the last cell in the hallway and right next to us was a tall wooden door that had some words painted on it that I could not read.

"So what do you figure happens now" I ask Mika

"How the fuck should I know you seem to think I frequent this spot on a regular basis" Mika rudely spits rather than says back at me

"Sorry I am just shit scared and I just want to go home" letting my eyes well up with tears

"Relax there Sly buddy old pal im sure we will just sit in this cell for a good ten years then we will just die it aint so bad now what do you think about that"

"Fuck you I just hope you die before me so I can make a blanket out of you"

For the rest of the night Mika and I did not speak to each other but we did listen and our conversation sounded much like rest of the residents inside this house of misery and of course misery loves company.

(6)
I awoke to a loud yelping from the cell across from me the warden was towering over top one of the inmates choking him with his massive hands and flailing him all about the cell laughing wildly like a dog would play with a chew toy the inmate went limp but the warden did not care this only intensified his rage on the lifeless carcass. The inmate was dragged coldly out of his cell and through the mysterious door adjacent to my cell leaving a ruby red racing stripe behind them.

"Hey Mika did you see that, I can’t even believe my eyes why the fuck did he do that!"

"You still don’t get it do you Sly no one cares about us, the warden can do whatever he want, we belong to him now unless you are chosen"

"What do you mean chosen who chooses us"

"I am not too sure I mean I just heard stories and shit on the street, it could all be bullshit"

Then from a cell next to where the crime scene had occurred a scruffy looking guy spoke up.

"The kids man the fucking kids; they choose who gets to live!" The old man hollered at us

"Kids what the hell do you mean th" and before I could finish my sentence I heard a scream down the hall way.

"Their coming everyone shut the fuck up they’re coming act natural and put on a pretty face"

(7)
Down the hallway a tall women and a child emerged from the darkness and began squatting down and inspecting each and every inmate sometimes laughing and sometimes showing a lot of remorse saying words such as awe poor thing and o look at him mommy he is so ugly. As the lady and child made their way down the hall of inspection the warden came through the door and greeted them about half way down the corridor.

"Hello there ma’am how do you do are you looking for anything in particular" The warden said with the fakest sincerity

"I am not too sure see it’s my son’s birthday and we wanted to get him a present do you have anything younger, more like a puppy"

As soon as these words came out of her mouth the Jail went crazy because they all knew they were not going to get picked we were all old dogs’ old ass mutts and nobody wanted a dirty old flea bag.

"I am sorry ma’am we only have a older variety, good dogs but old and brittle"

So she left with no more inspections. She showed us hope and the warden took it and crushed it with his claws.

(8)
Over the next set of days the beating and murders became more frequent and senseless. I barked in horror when the warden crushed the skull of a fellow canine with the heel of his boot and that very bark sent him in my direction. I screamed and cried but he continued forward I pissed all over the kennel in terror and he beat me right in front of my friend every so often I would catch a glimpse of Mika out of the corner of my eye as I was being flung around the cell cowering in the corner scared as I was being strangled until I passed out with the taste of blood running through my mouth. I awoke the next morning lying in the corner of the cage, dried blood smeared across the floor and patches of my hair torn out leaving deep red rashes.

"Your fucking alive man I can’t believe it Sly you’re alive"

Mika ran towards me and started licking my face letting the tears fall to the floor, I pulled away in brute pain and dropped to the floor conscious but hurt badly I almost wish I had died. The dogs starting yelling again.

"Here we go again boys and girls put on your best dress its show time"

Just like before a young lady and a small boy entered staring and inspecting each and every one of us until they approached our cage.

"Mommy mommy I want that one!"

"O but son he is all beat up he is a wild stray dog you don’t want him he looks sick"

"No mommy the other one!"

Just then Sly looked at me with pure joy and total heartbreak at the same time and all I could do was drop my head and cry.

"Warden ill take the Jack Russell and by the way that other dog looks like it need some medical attention"

"O O! Right he must have gotten himself into a nasty dog fight I will take good care of him you can count on that dear."

The women and her boy left with my last true friend I would not have stopped them even if I had the strength to I am just happy for the moment that one of us made it out of here tail intact.

(9)
I was very alone now even with all the noise surrounding me more alone then I have ever been in my little life. The warden slow and calmly opens the door and takes a good look around and spits on the entrance of my cage.

"Hello there young pup, you look hurt would you like a band aid or how about a yummy treat" The warden spoke through me

I couldn’t even look him in the eyes it’s amazing how fast life can change right before you. He popped open my cage and snagged my tail with his fingers and began to drag me, my nails were useless they had already broken off in the van and had not grown in yet so I just let go and began to slide on my way through the door. Inside the door was very bright and had that doctor’s office smell to it not a stink but a smell, it was very refreshing considering for the past week I slept in my own shit and blood. The room had many counter tops covered in stainless steel utensils with shiny sharp bits protruding out of them oddly enough these are not what scared me. The Warden picked me up with a single hand underneath my bell and drop me face down on top of a shiny metal table.

"Well little guy its end of the road for you no one is going to want to choose you to take home nobody wants you so there is no reason to keep you around any longer"

I tried best to muster out any words any last attempt to persuade him not to pull the plug on me but nothing came out but a gurgle. I saw the warden reach into a small drawer and pull out a syringe filled with a yellow toxic the same yellow as the wardens liver diseased eyes. The injection went straight into my neck deep down with serious pain then the pain began to cease and my family again flicked into my eyes and realized I am loved and the warden is wrong even in the state I am in my family would accept me and I know Mika would as well, after this brief thought everything was consumed with darkness.