More Rats

This morning was no different to yesterday.  Two guards brought in water and oatmeal gruel, and again they seemed in a hurry.  The beating was down to just a few swipes with the club – they left promptly once the food and water were placed down.  I grunted to try and show that they'd broken my spirits.  They seemed to be chuckling in their disgusting Gurgam way as they left.  I tried to look past them and into the area beyond the door.  I could see very little, it's some sort of corridor or room, but the floor was a couple of steps higher than in here, and it looked dry.  It was hard to see because I was laying on the cell floor wrapped in the disgusting bedding.

Fortunately for me the guards didn't look too hard around them in the room.  I've caught several rats during the night (this is when they seem to be most active), and I was running out of space to hang them.  I need them to dry out before I can eat them, so I can't put them on the floor, even if it would attract more rats.  This place is infested, there must be hundreds of the little critters.

I picked the edge off one of the smelly rotten blankets and undid some of its woollen thread.  I used this to string the headless rats by their back feet to the back of the door where we have a couple of loose nails.  There are six rats hanging there now, and I've already eaten three others.

I've been feeling much better since my diet improved over these last couple of days.  I've been dropping the carcasses into the latrine, which is several feet deep and has a pool of water at the bottom.  With the lack of food I'd hardly been using it for its intended purpose.