Ch. Midnight Zoo 3 Midnight Zoo 3

The warden, Elias, led us past a series of enclosures. The first assignment went to Agnes, the woman in red who’d been so quick to mock me. Her 

task: to feed the tiger. 

A thick, foul stench rolled out of the cage. Inside, a massive tiger lay listlessly on the ground, its fur matted with filth and… bits of red and white. 

Agnes approached the cage, her body trembling. She took one step inside, saw something we couldn’t, and then, not three seconds later, she 

screamed and scrambled back out. She clutched the bars, retching violently. 

“Inside… it’s full of… player… remains…” she choked out between heaves. 

Everyone went pale. I just dug a finger in my ear. Damn this tinnitus, I thought. She’s all flash and no substance. Definitely won’t last. A good zook- 

eeper can’t be afraid of a little mess. 

Elias’s face grew even colder at her failure. “Get back in there and feed your animal. Or else…” 

Agnes shook her head frantically. “The rules! The rules said not to get close to the animals! I can’t! I’ll die if I break the rules!” 

Elias remained impassive. “You can ask someone else to feed it for you. Otherwise, you will not be allowed into the staff dorms tonight.” 

Marcus stroked his chin. “The dorms must be the safe house for this instance. As long as we’re inside, the animals can’t get us.” 

Agnes’s desperate eyes darted around the group. Everyone avoided her gaze, including Marcus, the self–proclaimed leader. Her face was a mask 

of white terror. “I… I…” 

I let out a sigh. She had been so smug earlier; I’d figured she knew a thing or two about handling animals. Guess not. 

I raised my hand. “Warden, sir? If you don’t mind, I’d like to give it a try. I have prior experience as a zookeeper.” 

Elias’s brow furrowed again at my formal address. “If she agrees, I have no objection.” 

Agnes looked at me, stunned that I would help her. “Th–thank you,” she stammered, shoving her bucket of feed into my hands and scurrying as far