Page 102 of I Am Salvation

The next day when I talked to Leon, I asked for some kitchen duty to make some money. Technically, anyone under sixteen isn’t supposed to work, but some of them do. I told Leon how I was very interested in the food service industry, and I wanted to gain some experience so I could find work once I got out of this place. I didn’t want to end up as one of the statistics on the street.

I used my words very carefully.

And Leon?

He fell for it. Hook, line, and sinker.

In a few weeks, Tully will be kicked out. Every time I see him, he looks a little more fearful. A little weaker.

Perfect.

Tonight, after my shift, I grab one of the sharp knives and shove it under my shirt.

No one even noticed. The kitchen staff doesn’t pay much attention to us, other than to yell at us to work faster.

If anyone saw me, they didn’t say anything.

The steel is cool against my skin.

It’s a powerful feeling. Knowledge that I’ll get Tully back.

I planned it all carefully. Tully’s exit interview is tonight. I get up from one of the desks where I’m doing homework.

“Where are you off to?” Zach asks me.

“I don’t feel too well.” I fake a nauseated face. “I’m going to go see the nurse.”

“Oh. Okay. Hope you feel better.”

I rub my belly, letting the steel of the knife prick me just a bit. “Yeah. Me too.”

I walk down the hallway, stopping by an empty bedroom and grabbing a pillow on the way. Finally I make it to the room where Tully is with his exit counselor.

And I wait.

Five minutes go by.

Ten.

Fifteen.

Until the door opens.

Tully walks out and turns toward his room—all the way at the end of the hallway.

And that’s where I wait for him, hiding in the shadows.

When he gets to the room, I step out.

He glares at me. “What are you looking at, shithead?”

And I say the words I’ve rehearsed so many times before.

“I’m looking at a pathetic dead man.”

I grab the knife and plunge it into his stomach.

He lets out a gargling, choking cry, and tumbles to the floor. “Fuck you, you little cunt!”

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