Sangre De Toro (Old Draft - Now Published!)

Chapter 9 - 2,000,000 Euros

'He's recovering well,' Alfonso said to Rita after giving Pepelito his painkillers. Pepelito stared warily at him but then saw the man had brought fresh grass and some carrots, which he placed in front of the television. He edged forward and ate them. Sometimes his muscle injuries made eating hard to face, but he was starting to get his appetite back.

He walked towards the front door, wishing he could leave but scared of what was out there. He missed the outside, the sun warming his back, grass that didn't go dry if he left it a while. This place was too small. Rita was out most of the day and being alone made him sad and scared.

Most of all, he missed the others. He thought of the friend he had met in one of the trucks, and got to know while stuck in the enclosure.

Ladron was big and brown, with huge horns. Pepelito saw one of the ends was bleeding where they'd filed it down. He walked over to Ladron over the bare ground and licked him, standing close as he lay down. Up close, Pepelito could see he was crying. He lay down beside Ladron and licked him around his face. Something hard hit him in the back. He looked around to see where it had come from.

'Stop that.' Pepelito felt a sharp prod in his back.

'This one doesn't know where he is,' the man laughed as Pepelito looked around him, confused. After a moment, he licked at the hair behind Ladron's horns again.

'Look how soft he is. No ferocity at all.'

'Don't do that. Bad.' Something sharp hit him hard in the back again, stinging him. He got up and walked towards the other five bulls. He was nervous of them. One of them had tried to fight with him earlier.

Ladron looked at him imploringly. Pepelito told him he'd be back.

Feeling so sad, he thought of how Ladron had given him grateful licks when he came back, sure the men had gone home. They had laid side by side on the bare ground, and calmed each other down.   

'I think he wants to go outside,' Rita said sadly. Alfonso sighed.

'He needs to yeah, it's cruel to keep a big animal like a bull in this sort of space for too long. The problem is, he's now famous, and even more valuable than before. These taurinos will be desperate for their 'triumph', Castella especially,' Alfonso said. Pepelito didn't understand how, but he knew he was helping him.

'Yeah, I see him looking at the door,' Rita said. 'I think he's sad.'

'Yeah, I think he is, and he needs company,' Alfonso said, holding out a bit of grass in his hand. Pepelito carefully took it and ate it.

'A friend from work might have to sleep in my spare room for a week or so. I know, I know. But I am pretty sure I can trust this guy. I've known him for 15 years.' As Rita spoke Pepelito wandered off into the kitchen. He nudged one of the bread rolls Alfonso had bought himself off the table with his nose and picked it up, before swallowing it whole. There was a bunch of grapes too. He liked grapes, so he ate the entire thing including the stalk.

'It's not like that. He's gay,' Rita said quickly. Pepelito couldn't understand but his hearing was much better than most humans'. He could hear everything through the thin walls.

'It doesn't matter – him staying is not ideal, given the situation, is it,' Alfonso said quietly, and both humans gave forced, nervous laughs. Rita seemed stressed; Pepelito wondered what she was stressed about. He wandered over to a silver fridge in the corner that extended to the ceiling. He had seen Rita taking things out of there before. He hooked his horn around the handle and pulled as he had watched the policewoman doing, taking several steps back.