had to waste the meat. But Dean didn’t like doing anything that wasn’t his idea. I think he enjoyed watching it die, to be honest.”
Just the mention of Dean made Michael shudder. After spooning the last of his corn into his mouth, Michael chugged it back with another guzzle of stale water. Michael had stopped being hungry quite a few mouthfuls ago but knew that food shouldn’t be wasted. After sliding his plate away from him, he covered his mouth and burped. “Thank you, George. That was a nice meal.”
While rocking back in his seat, George released a booming laugh at the ceiling. It dropped so low it seemed to shake the building's foundations.
Michael couldn't help but smile.
“No, it wasn’t,” George said. “It tasted like arse, but you’re a polite boy, so thank you.”
George pulled a small, clear bag from his top pocket and tossed it across the table at Michael. “Potato seeds. We need to plant them in the ground we dug up yesterday. Do you want to go and make a start while I clean up in here?”
Michael looked at the clear packet lying on the table. It had about thirty brown seeds inside of it. Planting seeds beat washing dishes any day of the week, so Michael picked the bag up and headed for the back door.
Sowing
An electric sting ran through Michael's right palm when he gripped the trowel. The week of hard work in the garden had given him blisters on top of blisters, but he couldn’t stop. Not that George expected him to work; if he told him how he felt, George would let him stop immediately. But the physical exercise gave him something to do and stopped his mind from spiraling into the well of dark memories.
It also gave him the opportunity to be around George without having to talk to him. It allowed him to live under the big man's protection but not have to engage with him in any real way. Every time they were alone with nothing to do, the same questions presented themselves. Should he be living with this man? Would he do to Michael what he'd done to his dad?
With his hands on his hips, Michael surveyed the freshly turned lawn. They had a space of earth about the same size as an American pool table. At least that's what George had said. Michael hadn't ever seen an American pool table. All that mattered was it was big enough to grow food for them in.
When Michael dropped to his knees, the soft mud cushioned his fall. His palm burned as he started to dig a small trench for the seeds.
As he worked his way along the small mud patch, digging the trench like George had shown him, he heard something but didn’t stop.
It took him straining his ears to keep track of the sound on the other side of the wall. He listened to the gentle crunch of dirt. It sounded like someone walking on tiptoes—maybe two people, but no more than that.
Michael stopped digging to pour the seeds into the trench. His hand quivered as he shook the packet over the earth. The people or person on the other side continued moving.
At the end of the first row, Michael swiped his hair from his forehead and looked back up the line of brown seeds lying on the dark earth. He’d planted all of them. From the corner of his eye he caught the slightest movement of black hair. It looked like a man; either that or a woman with very short hair and a bald patch.
Although his breath caught in his throat, Michael focused on keeping the pretense up. If he didn’t give anything away, he had the advantage.
Michael stood up and stretched to the sky as he called to the house. “Do we have any water in there, George? I’m really thirsty.”
Without giving George the time to respond, he tossed his trowel to the floor and walked across the muddy garden to the back door.
Once inside, Michael closed the patio door and walked over to George at the sink.
When George turned around and looked down at the muddy trail he’d just walked into the house, Michael stopped in his tracks, fear sending ice through his veins. “Sorry.”
Although George batted his hand through the air as if he didn’t care, the frown on his face said otherwise. He still humored Michael. “Don’t worry.”
When he looked up at him, he paused for a second and then said, “Are you