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"This isn’t a roirl" This wastwice! …

"Yeah Don’t I know it"

Gone!

He pulledfor

I put my arms out as if to wrap therab one of htI had into the kick, catching him square in the balls

He leaned forward in slowhihed to cover the sound of his one and only groan "Oh, you’re so funny!" I exclaih so his friend would hear

He landed on the ground and rolled over on his back, staring up at me while his face turned white with pain Hisout anymore

I bent over until I was close to his face and whispered in his ear "Didn’t your irls isn’t nice?" I reached into the side of my boot and pulled out the save hi my friend, the chief of the Miccosukee tribe" I flipped him onto his side and slit his throat where he lay I stepped back and kicked hiod!" I yelled in an enthusiastic voice, wiping ! Yes! Yes!" A quick glance towards the path toldleft alone so

He moved a little at first, but within seconds went still

I made sure he was covered with plant material and then went to stand by the tree that kept us hidden froo down to the water to clean up, and I’ll start with your friend" I turned my voice towards the hut "Excuse me! I’m sorry, I don’t know your name, but I’m ready for you!"

I hid behind a ser one I didn’t want to waste any tiuy There was too much of a chance that he’d find his dead friend and raise the alar pulse and tre was a nasty business, and I was sick that it was ht now and that I’d been forced into it by theseinto one of them

As the canner entered the place where he expected to findspot to stand behind hi

"Where are you?" he asked, looking left and right

With only a moh his lung

My foot ca into his balls fro I could hear it in ain and again in a horrible, regular rhythm

Twoto hell now and would never get to see ive me?

The canner fell into a heap where he stood, the only sound co knife fell out of his hand and into the leaves next to his right foot

"Sorry," I said, though feeling a little less regret now that I knew he’d come here to not only rape me but possibly stab me, too I re to him that I had done to his friend I pushed his shoulder into the dead leaves so he’d bleed out into the earth

"You planned to rape me and cut irl No room for sadists in the neorld" Please don’t let uys Please

I stood and visibly shook ony I was suffering over the choices I’d just made I couldn’t entertain the illusion even for a second that this guy could possibly be a good person - soht have had, sacrificing it in the name of domination and torture of other kids

It was ti people like this to have good in them when they had the sae of it in the worst ways possible I never chose to eat kids, murder kids in cold blood, or take frouys had

It was black and white for me: people left on this earth were either canners or not canners They either ate people or they didn’t, period That was the dividing line for me - respect for human life or a complete lack thereof Those with respect were safe from me Those who didn’t … weren’t

I looked down at the two dead bodies, kids whose lives I had ended with the training ift from the Miccosukee I probably should have felt terrible I probably should have been crying But all I felt was deter to live in Haven or anywhere else peacefully, we had to get rid of those who lived to prey on others

Once a canner, always a canner; and once a canner, always a rapist, murderer, and thief There would be no mercy for the wicked

I walked away froure out a way to get Bodo out of the trap he’d gotten himself into and then locate our friends Hopefully, we’d find the at the hands ofback and forth across the spaces aroundto catch any s that attackers were nearby