Live Free or Die

As Jerry had hoped, the incessant taps he’d given the tiny crack on the glass in a certain corner of his cell for the past three months finally gave in tonight, and the wall came down with a deafening crash. Fortunately, the watchers weren’t around. Otherwise, his efforts would have all been for naught.
         He managed to descend to the ground floor and headed toward his escape route. Even in this unlit space, Jerry could see the other inmates eyeing him with both disdain and envy as he ran to his freedom. Once outside, he was momentarily disoriented as he wasn’t aware how he’d gotten to this place but he instinctively knew to follow the sound of the river.
         Jerry ran for what seemed like miles until the distant lights of the city came into view. Just as he was relishing the overwhelming thrill of his escape, a rustle in the dark woods to his right made him pause. His eyes widened and he froze in fear as a large cat leapt from the bushes and ran toward him. He could only let out an indiscernible squeak as paws came down hard on his tiny body, pinning him to the wet soil. As he felt his new captor's fangs burrow into his soft skin, he tried to lift his head to see the city lights in the distance one final time to no avail. Thoughts of his brief liberty filled his fleeting consciousness until it dissolved into nothing.

Tom loved to hunt, and he soon realized the strange building near his human’s home was ripe with potential and unsuspecting prey. Tonight’s meal was not as satisfactory as he’d hoped, though—that tiny mouse tasted of chemicals— but he was full. And that was all that mattered.


Contest entry for 2018-04-24 prompt of "Daily Flash Fiction Challenge"   by Arakun the twisted raccoon
Prompt: Write a story that includes an escaped prisoner
Word Count: 296