“What are you going to do?”
“Honestly, I don’t know.” He sways slightly. “You really worked me over with that piece of glass. Did you break the mirror?”
I nod.
“Huh. Didn’t think of that.”
“What will the punishment be this time?” I ask bitterly.
“I tell you what, let’s call it even between us.”
And then he passes out.
My breath hitches as I stare at his still form. Is he toying with me? Is this a test?
I stand up slowly and step cautiously over to him. He looks terrible, his skin so white it’s almost translucent. I risk a closer look at his face. He has thick dark hair cut short, a jaw shadowed by stubble, and dark lashes concealing eyes that haunt my sleep. His profile is strong and hard even while he lies there unconscious.
I nudge him with my foot. He doesn’t move. Maybe he isn’t faking it.
Looking at him, at what I did to him, I feel a measure of remorse.
But not enough to stay.
Not enough to help.
I turn, fling open the door, and run out of the room.
28
HEATHER
––––––––
Thursday, July 15
“This is one of the dog rooms,” says Glen, a thin, brown-haired animal technician sporting a scraggly soul patch. “I’ll show you how to clean it.”
Dressed in my SolomiChem uniform of lab coat, disposable gloves, shoe covers, surgical mask, and hair net, I follow Glen into room 220. A two-tiered row of lab cages line the left wall. The beagles inside bark and jump around excitedly.
“How old are the dogs?” I ask Glen.
“Nine months.”
“Aren’t they too young to be tested on?”
He scratches under his hair net. “I guess so, but it costs money to keep them around.”
I have to work hard to keep the anger off my face. I watch as Glen shows me how to clean the cages. He grabs a dog by the scruff of the neck and transfers him from his cage to the larger exercise cage, then he sprays the dog’s cage with water and disinfectant to remove the feces and urine.
“No,” Glen protests when he sees me cuddling a dog. “We’re on a tight schedule here. There’s no time for that.”
After showing me again how to transfer the dogs, he watches carefully as I clean two cages his way.
“You okay to do the rest on your own?” he asks.
“I’ll be fine.”
“Good. I’ll start on the next room. Shout if you need me.”
