The Cage Read Online Free PDF

manifesto, let’s concentrate on getting the hell out of here.”
    Jared stirred from his spot on the floor and looked up at them. Tears and snot covered his face.
    “That’s a great idea, Jeff.” Spittle flew from his lips as he spoke. His voice was thick and hoarse with sarcasm and panic. “I’m glad you’re in charge!”
    “What’s your problem?”
    “My problem? Well, first of all, how do you suggest we escape? In case you haven’t noticed, we’re locked up in the fucking cage!”
    Jeff opened his mouth to respond, but then paused. The fact was, he hadn’t the faintest idea how to escape. He hadn’t thought about it until now.
    “I don’t know,” he admitted. “I’ve been too preoccupied with thinking that I was going to be shot.”
    They all fell silent for a moment. Jared slowly clambered to his feet and wiped his eyes and nose with the sleeve of his white dress shirt. He sniffed a few more times. Then he stared down at the floor.
    “Sorry,” he mumbled, not looking up at them. “Sorry I freaked out.”
    “It’s okay,” Jeff told him, softening his voice. “Don’t worry about it. Like I told Clint, we’re all scared. We just need to hold it together—come up with a plan. I don’t want to die tonight, and I’m pretty sure the rest of you don’t either.”
    “I’m gonna die if I don’t piss soon,” Clint groaned. “It really frigging hurts.”
    “Hang in there,” Roy told him.
    “That’s easy for you to say. You don’t have an enlarged prostate.”
    Roy grinned. “Yeah, but my liver is trying to kill me. Want to trade?”
    “Hell, no.” Clint smiled in response, despite his clear discomfort. “I happen to know that in addition to your liver, you can’t get it up anymore. I don’t need those problems.”
    “Who told you that?”
    “Your wife.”
    “Could we pry the fencing up?” Scott asked, interrupting their banter. “Maybe wedge something under it and lift a section far enough off the floor that Jared could crawl out?”
    “W-why me?” Jared stammered, his eyes suddenly wide. “I don’t want to go out there with that guy on the loose. What if he catches me?”
    “You’re the skinniest,” Scott explained. “I don’t think Jeff or I could fit underneath it, and there’s no way in hell that Clint or Roy would.”
    “Thanks,” Roy said. “I appreciate that. Nothing like being told you’re fat right after your best friend tells everyone you can’t get it up, either.”
    Scott motioned to the wire mesh. “You want to try it? Be my guest.”
    “No thanks.” Roy shook his head. “It wouldn’t work, anyway. I mean, it’s a good plan, but we wouldn’t be able to bend or lift the wire high enough. There’s too much tension between the poles. That mesh is tighter than a Catholic school virgin. They manufacture it that way to prevent theft.”
    “Too bad they didn’t manufacture it with an escape route, too,” Jeff said. “Didn’t they ever plan on people getting accidentally locked inside?”
    “Watching the security camera,” he whispered. “And wondering if he’s watching us.”
    The others paused.
    “Oh shit,” Jeff said. “I forgot about that.”
    “Fuck him,” Scott snarled. “I don’t care if he is watching. We can’t just sit here and wait. We’ve got to do something.”
    He began rummaging through the box. After a moment, Jeff and Roy joined him. They searched through the miscellaneous junk—spare belts and bags for the store’s vacuum cleaner, remote controls for floor-model televisions that they no longer had in stock, assorted batteries, instruction manuals for various electronics, a black magic marker, paper clips, audio patch cords and cables, a pack of matches from the Odessa, and a camcorder charger for a model that had been discontinued years before. There was nothing useful—nothing that they could use as a tool or a weapon. Frustrated, they each stood up again.
    Clint whimpered softly.
    “Hang in there,” Roy told him