Beyond the Bars

Harold held his hat while he wiped the sweat from his brow. He hated this time of day. He’d asked if he could clean this area at the beginning of his shift, but they said no. Dipping the mop into the bucket, he took a long, deep breath. 

“Evening Harold. Unnerved today, aren’t they?” shouted his colleague, who was mopping at the other end.

“Yes, very”, Harold replied, tipping his cap. 

Bit more than unnerved, Harold thought to himself. He could see them all, huddled together, and the hairs stood up on the back of his neck. 

~

Eyes from the other side of the bars were watching, they always came this time of day. “Today is the day,” he called to the others. He had their attention, he always did.

The new baby had arrived. It marked the start. Or the end. An unusual tension floated about the group, and their confinement seemed smaller today. 

“There’s no need to panic,” he told them. More eyes stared back, and they held a lot more fear than the eyes on the other side of the bars. 

There were murmurs, he knew he’d had to work extra hard to keep them in check and stop them from losing their nerve. He was their leader. Ever since his own Father had grown too old and tired. 

“We’ve been working on this for months. You all know what to do. You all know why we're doing this.”

They gave him no response. 

“Come on guys.”

 Father would normally have berated him for this type of comment. Be a leader. Be tough on them. They depend on it. No soft approaches ever got anyone anywhere. But his Father had never had to do this type of leading before. 

His Father was different now. This place had destroyed him, and he was the only one who knew the life outside of these bars. Everyone else had been born here. 

Reminding the group of the plan one last time, he confirmed everyone’s tasks, they all had a part to play. Even Father.

The light was fading, causing shadows on the walls that always spooked the little ones. It was now or never. He only had a little time left before Father would be too ill to move. 

The Scared Eyes on the other side of the bars were joined by more eyes. The time was growing close. 

Parading the borders, their leader gave himself a minute. He was losing his nerve. He knew what would happen if they got it wrong. They’d be separated. It had taken a long time before they would allow them to be together since the last attempt. His new-born was the last one to be born here. He swore it himself.  

The clanging of their tools on the outside was the cue. Time to go. 

“Places everyone,” he called from the far side of the enclosure. He needed to be able to oversee the whole thing. One of the elders was struggling. “MOVE, HURRY,” he called. He knew his voice was frightening. They hadn’t heard it before, they’d never needed to. 

The doors on the outside were about to be unlocked. They recognised the noise. The door that leads to their outdoor enclosure would be closed just before the others entered in from beyond the bars. A carefully structured process of keeping them inside. But their smallest adult had been picking at it for weeks. He liked doing it. He did it to every door. That’s what gave them the idea of how to succeed this time. Some of the females gathered, ready to do their part. 

He scanned the room. It was all going to plan. The one with Scared Eyes had disappeared from the bars. Any minute now, he thought. 

The group patiently awaited his signal. The only sounds were the murmurs of his content New-born. 

But nothing happened. He waited. The others were growing restless. Any longer and they would decide not to go through with it. He motioned to them to hold steady. Moving his head slightly, he saw the large bolt sliding, a sound that always riled the others. There was a clunk. The door to their outdoor enclosure was locked. But not for long. 

He looked towards the bars, the inside of the enclosure, the high, solid walls. It was all he’d ever known. He dared not let the others know he was scared too. This was the right thing to do. They couldn’t spend any more time here. They’d needed to get back to where they belong. They just needed to get out of here first and it would all be ok. 

A jangle and a door creaked opened. Noises told him the Scared Eyes was now in their outdoor enclosure. They waited for him to begin so that he was distracted and away from the main door. He was usually quick, so they would have to be quicker. 

Their leader did another check, everyone was still in place. Except Father. He was still in his corner, not in his next position. Racing over, their leader helped him up, taking him by the arm. One of the others called over, time to go. Now. 

Father wouldn’t move. Panic set in. The others could see. Father’s eyes were dull, he’d lost the fight. Maybe he’d lost it a long time ago. The growth on his foot would slow them down. He could barely move. 

The light had completely gone now, replaced with patches of light that hurt everyone’s eyes. 

The females had started, their door to the outdoor enclosure popped open with a gentle push, and they began to move. The Scared Eyes one cowered to a corner of the outdoor enclosure while the others made their way to the main door. The females made a lot of noise and fuss, they knew what scared the ones on the outside of the bars, especially this one.

Father, hearing the others, dragged himself, without any help. As though hearing the desperate cries of the others renewed him for one more fight. 

The group gathered around the main door, waiting for their leader. He took his new-born in one arm and held his Father’s arm in the other. A step through the main door and he wad beyond the bars. He’d done it. He led his group away from the enclosure that had kept them inside, away from where they belonged, bound to a life so alien and barbaric it made them ill and stripped them of who they really were.

They were free. 

~

Harold finally unscrunched his eyes. He lowered his hands slightly away from his face to check they had gone. He saw the doors. All open. Getting to his feet, he carefully peered into the indoor enclosure, just to make sure none were left, waiting to finish him off. It was empty. Every single one had gone, including the baby. He hated the job anyway. It was the push he needed. He jogged as quickly as his old legs would carry him, holding his hand to his heart as if it would fall out. He gripped the phone to sound the alarm. 

The next day it was on all the radio stations, on all the morning TV shows, and even made the front page of one major newspaper…

***Breaking news-

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            - 18 Chimpanzees escape a zoo***