Page 109 of Eight of Swords, Part Two

They’re turning red.

Red like her hair.

Like blood in the snow.

Red like the roses in his books.

‘Riley,’ Troy warns. ‘Calm down or else.’

Troy means it.

Riley knows that.

But he can’t calm down.

He can’t.

There’s an animal inside him, so unlike Bunny.

And it’s straining, clawing, needs to get free.

He sobs loudly, fingers digging into his own skin, clawing at his hair. It’s not the same colour as Troy’s. He’s breathing so fast it makes him dizzy.

Sees only red, red, lovely, rosy red. It vanishes when Troy punches him.

✴

Troy lets one of his men teach Riley things.

Mostly books and words and numbers.

It’s not boring, but his hand cramps after a few hours.

The man doesn’t like Riley at first, makes it clear that he thinks this is a waste of his time. He sighs often, seems bored and annoyed. After a few months, though, Riley makes progress and starts getting little smiles here and there.

‘Much better,’ he tells Riley when he can write a sentence and put a full stop at the end. ‘You read fine, but your writing is shit so that’s what we need to focus on.’

‘Thanks,’ Riley says quietly.

The man’s name is Zachary.

‘You’re welcome.’

Over the next few weeks, Riley tries much harder.

Zachary fully smiles. It’s a rare feeling that blooms within.

Approval.

Riley likes it.

For the first time in his life, he sees two paths.

A road to the kind of friendship he reads about in his books. Someone who likes him; he could like them too.

They could be friends.

Or…