My eyes would not look away from the white instrument of death despite only having peripheral vision of it, the blade glimmering threateningly as it reflected the bright lights overhead. All the while, I pleaded with God that whoever this new character was would pay me no heed. With a racing heart, I tried raising my head so that I could get a better look at the knife-wielding guy. Though I couldn’t see his face, I recognized the gaudy, orange uniform and my heart dropped along with all my hopes for salvation.

Another lawless criminal. 

“Well? What do you have to say for yourself, scum?” he growled in that menacing, bone-chilling tone of his. He sounded extremely pissed off as he tossed the knife from one hand to the other skillfully.

How did he manage to get a hold of a knife in prison? Did he get it in a cake from his mother? Or were some guards here dirty and would overlook whatever you were sneaking in, in exchange for favors or cigarette or money or something like that?

One thing I did know for certain was that I had to get the fuck off this damned bed.

Gerard slowly backed away, putting as much distance between him and the furious inmate until he hit the edge of the bed. He looked just about ready to drop dead on the spot. He stammered pathetically “I-I’m n-not the one who s-stole Schneizel’s stash, I swear! It was that f-fucking s-snitch, Hansel!” His voice cracked. He visibly swallowed over and over as if trying to clear a lodged lump. Big, fat droplets of sweat rolled down his forehead.

He was lying, that much was clear and only an idiot or a blind person wouldn’t be able to see it. The other prisoner made no move aside from tossing the knife repeatedly like a harmless toy. He appeared to be assessing Gerard, but there was no telling for sure because I couldn’t see his eyes.

From what I had gathered, Gerard stole something that belonged to that inmate and he was now about to pay the price.

“You’re lying. You better rethink your answer before I cut open your throat.” The other inmate sneered, and he finally stepped into the light.

My breath hitched in my throat and my eyes popped out of their sockets. He was like a beast –an ugly, hairy, bear-like beast—that had emerged out of his cave to terrorize and conquer with his heavily-muscled physique. He had to be at least seven feet tall. His uniform’s sleeves were pulled up to reveal some seriously gruesome scars running down his bulky arms.

How had he even fit through the door?

My only solace was that I was not his focus. Not yet, anyway.

Just as I thought that, his scary dark eyes zeroed in on me. My heart rate skyrocketed. The murderous intent in his eyes he had been directing at Gerard earlier changed to open curiosity as he stared at me. His eyes raked over my body and I was reminded once again of my state of nudity.

“Oh, what do we have here?” he drawled, a smirk forming on his hard face. His anger seemed to rapidly evaporate into the air.

My throat went dry.

“Are you idiot still trading cigarettes to do your dirty inspection on the new pups?”

Gerard didn’t utter a word in response. His eyes were glued to the knife by the intruder’s side and his face had paled considerably.

I watched the intruder with wary, distrustful eyes. He looked like a hardcore gangster. Or maybe even mafia.

“Schneizel wants his stash back in less than an hour or he’ll have you gutted,” he said, his tone serious, and then he added, "By me."

Whoever this Schneizel guy was seemed to be the intruder’s boss. Just how much more terrifying was the man who bossed the intruder about?

“It wasn’t me!” Gerard cried, looking at the brink of literal tears.

I almost felt sorry for him.

Serves him right, I thought vengefully. My only regret was that I wasn’t the one making him cower and shake like a frightened little girl.

The intruder moved so fast that I didn’t even realize he’d moved from his place until he disappeared from my line of vision. I blinked, confused, then I slowly turned my head to the other side.

He picked up Gerard by the neck and carried him all the way to the far wall as if he weighed nothing. His massive hands closed around the smaller man’s neck in a vice-like grip. Gerard struggled against the larger man’s grip, uselessly clawing at his gigantic hand with both hands.

“I told you not to lie to me. I will crush your neck with my bare hand if you don’t start talking right now. We already know it’s you; we checked the hidden surveillance cameras so stop wasting my fucking time.”

Involuntarily, my eyes wandered around the room looking for one of those cameras the intruder was talking about.

“H-Hidden cameras?” Gerard squeaked.

The intruder chuckled darkly and my insides twisted. “Did you think Schneizel would just leave his stash lying around without any form of security?”

“F-Fine, I’ll tell you where the stash is. Just p-promise you won’t kill me!”

I was beginning to wonder what this ‘stash’ was. Dope or cigarettes? I heard the latter was the substitute for money in prisons, so it seemed the more reasonable guess.

“This isn’t some kind of bargain, you fool! You will show me where you hid the stash and after that Schneizel will decide what to do with you. For your own good, you better pray to your maker he’s in a good mood,” The intruder snarled viciously

Abruptly, he released Gerard and took hold of the back of his neck instead. He proceeded to drag the frightened man toward the door from his nape. I started to relax; relieved to see they were leaving –even though I was still tied up.

Abruptly, he halted in his tracks and his eyes fell on me.

Cold dread filled me now that I had his undivided attention.

“What’s your name?” The question caught me off guard. I’d been expecting something insulting or a dirty comment about my state of nudity.

Was it wise to tell my name to the violent, knife-wielding criminal?

“Well?” he demanded with a raised eyebrow, visibly growing agitated with each passing second I failed to answer him.

I figured being beaten to death while I lay sprawled atop a bed helpless and naked sounded like the worse decision, so I opted to tell him.

"My name’s Aiden March."

He stared emotionlessly at me for the longest time, his eyes revealing nothing, making me rethink my decision. And then he grinned at me.