The Lion - Part 12b

I was right. It wasn't good at all.

"Great. I'll take that." Then the Big Hurter bent over and snatched my half finished Angus! I yelled "Hey! Give it back!" as I tried to get untangled from the stupid table seat.  That's when he hit me in the chest. I fell, bounced off the table and fell side ways. As I did I felt something in my leg give. That hurt more than the punch.  A lot more.  I heard laughter, and the Little Hurter, Shorty, say "Get them yogurts too. I be liking my yogurt."

I rolled off the seat and hit the ground. It was dirty down here. I thought "Maybe I should stay down here. Maybe even crawl under the table where it would be harder to get me. I had a Hurter take his boots to me before. I didn't want it to happen again. In the background I heard the others yelling. Ana ripped something off in Spanish. I didn't need to a translator to know she had just called them queers.  I knew that word.  Then I heard the smack of a hand on flesh, a scream, and Ana had joined me on the concrete. I looked across at her. We looked at each other and I didn't miss what her eyes were telling me. I wanted to scream at her "I don't care! I'm not a hero! I don't have a heart!" Then I heard Shorty say "Drag the bitch back up here and bend her over. I'll show her whose a maricón.

There was bad coldness in his voice.  I saw Big Hurters arms come down,  pick her up, and watched as she tried to fight lose. In the background Tina yelled "I'm calling 911!" Shorty laughed and said "Go ahead. They don't come anymore."

"Oh god please help me" I prayed. I wanted to hide. They were going to crush her. Ana cried out "Brian!" and started sobbing. This wasn't right. Crushing is bad! Bad! I rolled out from under the table and tried not to scream from the pain in my leg.  I looked up. The Hurters were busy. Shorty was trying to get Ana's pants down. Maria was just standing there and I couldn't see Tina. A little voice said "Don't let them do this Brian. If you do you will go far away and never come back." I pushed my self up. "What the hell did I have to stop them?" Then I remembered the trowel. I pulled it out and said "Hey!" I had to say it twice to get their attention.

Shorty stopped, looked over his shoulder and laughed. "Your're pathetic." Big Hurter grinned at me. I looked at my trowel. It was pathetic. A wooden handle with a steel curved scooper thing at the end. It even had dried dirt on it from the last person who used it. Shorty turned away and went back to paying attention to Ana's pants.  Big Hurter reached under Ana and grabbed her breast and twisted it. He told her "Quit struggling until we're in bitch." Shorty had her pants halfway down. Ana needed to wash her underwear or buy some new ones. I was going to throw the trowel away and see how far I could get before they noticed I was gone when the same little voice said "Excaliber." Just like that. Then I remembered! The Sword in the Stone! I knew what I had to do! I had the answer!

I stepped forward, that hurt, raised the trowel, and drove it into Shortys back. He had assumed the hunch position and was fumbling with his pants.  I didn't drive it into him. I had gone for the center and hit something hard. I think it was bone. So I raised it up above my head and did it again. That went in a little deeper. I liked that. He was screaming louder than me an Ana combined. He sounded like a little girl. I grinned. Then Big Hurter was on me. I looked at him and my Mr. Smile froze. That's when he sunk that sheath knife he wore into me. I thought "Why Big Hurter?" When I looked into his eyes I got my answer. It was the same reply I had always gotten from Hurters. It said "Because I can." Then he pulled it out and hit me again. This was past hurt. I felt myself going down. "No yorgut parfait for me today" I thought and then I was back on the dirty concrete. I put my hands to where it hurt and knew I had dropped the trowel. That was bad I knew but I was leaking. Leaking blood.

Shorty was still howling. I looked up at Big Hurter. He looked at me puzzled. That was funny. What was he puzzled about? I heard Tina yell "Run you fucks! I called 911 and told them there's gunshots an a Officer was hurt!"  Tina was a bitch but she wasn't stupid. That was about the only thing you could say that would get a response nowaday. Shorty was screaming "Help me!"

"Funny" I thought "He's still hunched over but there is no Ana now. Where's Ana?" I must have gone to sleep for a second because when I opened my eyes the Hurters were gone and my head was in Ana's lap. That was nice of her. She was going to get her clothes messed up because I was leaking badly. It was even coming out my mouth. I knew that taste. I told her "Sorry...sorry Ana." I was sorry too. Sorry for so many things. So very, very many things. Her eyes were big and pretty. I never noticed that before. I tried to tell her what I wanted to tell her under the table. "Ana..."

"Ssshhhh."

I tried again. This was important. "Ana...I don't have a heart."

She smiled and said "Yes you do. You are Brian. Brian the Lion Heart...Don't you hear it?" She put her hand over mine where I was leaking so much. "I hear it mi amor." She heard it? I listened. She was right! I did have one! It was pumping so loudly now! Like a drum and it was tiring me out too...