Mr Bad and the Little Pigs

I stared at the cheque in my hand. Twelve dollars short. That’s twelve dollars of food my kids won’t eat. The idea of it all sent me into a spin, into a frenzy. No matter how much I told myself I’d gone clean, I felt the injustice of it all crawl under my fur like shedding a skin. So, I did it. I threw the rake down and marched straight to Mr One’s house. I wanted to hit him where it hurt! The straw couldn’t withstand my anger. It bellowed from deep within me. The brown flimsy sticks flew into the air. Mr One, the pig, was in the kitchen when it happened. Seeing me, he squealed in alarm.

‘Mr Bad, what are you doing!’ he wailed.

‘You’d better run, you fat lump of a pig! Try to cheat me, will you? I will take what’s mine!’

I watched him slip and fall trying to escape. I enjoyed the horror in his eyes. In a lucky turn of events, I was able to grab a few items. The fridge was packed and so was the pantry. I called Red who was, as luck would have it, just around the corner. She stopped by with her bag.

‘Ya want the whole kitchen or just the goods?’ she asked, opening her goody bag.

‘Take it all. Those tarts will please the boss.’

‘Ha! You know how Grandma likes a good raid. This will feed the entire village,’ she clapped.

I wasn’t done yet! My blood boiled as I thought of just a few people hoarding wealth. Mr Two had never been my favourite boss. I knew he was behind that new condo that sent so many out of the forest and scrambling over to Grandma’s. At this point, it became less about me and more about the injustice of it all.

I reached Mr Two’s house. I could see Mr One through the glass sliding door from the lanai. Two fat pigs. I could feel the whirlwind inside. I rumbled and pushed it out of me. The sticks trembled and fell away, and the house collapsed like a tower of Jenga. I saw them in shock. I saw the horror. I whistled to Red as the two fat pigs fled to the house of their brother, Mr Three. I remember panting, the garden pulsing in and out of view.

‘Want me to take the food?’ asked Red, who’d managed to follow me.

‘Take…take… it all!’ I panted.

‘What about the third?’

‘I ain’t got the lung capacity for that house.’