Claimed by the Ruthless Alpha Prince
With the bungee cord, however…
I looped the cord through the shackle, secured the hook, and then stretched the cord as far as I could, hooking the other end to a cross-bar of the cage’s wire frame. The tension on the shackle would pull it apart for me. Then I reached between the wires, tilting it carefully with one hand, and with the other, I tapped hard with my fingertip. Every now and then, I heard a click. It was mind-numbing—I kept at it for what felt like an hour, my fingers aching through my phalanges. Then, my efforts were rewarded when on one fateful tap, the padlock cracked open.
I stared in disbelief that it had actually worked. My reddened fingertips were worth it.