CHAPTER 11 

"What... what are you talking about?" 

I leaned forward in my chair, pressed my lips against the microphone, and held the phone tightly to my ear. "I said, me, Alex, the guards, the workers, all of us... we are all going to die in here!" 

I woke up this morning thinking I had big problems, but I was sure I would find a way out of them. The government had given me coordinates to a shipment. It had to be some sort of gadget, weapon, or map that could help me and the kid get out of here. And now that the terrible twos had arrived, I possibly had another mess on my plate to sort out. I hurried to the bathroom this morning, but so did others. I noticed everyone making a great effort to keep their distance from me. At first, I thought I was imagining things, but then I noticed the two showers next to me were empty, yet people were waiting to shower. After finishing my shower, I went to the grooming area and caught a glance of myself in the mirror. 

Well, I guess I should be grateful that he didn't recognize me. 

My mind flashed back to when I recalled my vision and realized who I had seen dying. 

(Last night's incident) 

"Yeah, what's it to you?" the man I recognized as Eason Wells said. 

Oh right, how could I have forgotten? 

I dyed my hair, shaved my beard, and wore contacts. Of course, he wouldn't recognize me; luckily. 

"Nothing. Excuse me." I tried to walk away without causing further damage, but the truth quickly hit him. 

"Hey, you..." He called out to me. "How do you know my name?" 

Damn it, he realized! 

I turned around slowly to buy some time and added a smirk to my face. 

Come on, Nick, think! Think! 

"It's funny; you'd think I wouldn't recognize you when you've gone to such extreme measures to cover your face. What's with all the hair?" 

"Excuse me?" I threw him off. 

"My sister, she went to your high school; Justice Truce High." 

"Yeah? What year?" he inquired, trying to catch me in a lie perhaps. 

"Oh, she graduated in 2114. You..." 

"2111." 

Yeah, I know. I also have a pretty good idea why you're here. 

I have to end this now. He's not the kind of bad news I want to get entangled with right now. "Anyway, I saw you play at a couple of games I came to. The crowd loved you." 

He seemed convinced enough... 

His guard was lowered; his face wasn't as tense anymore. 

"Yeah, they did. But don't act like you know me, you feel me? The Eason you saw on the field out there is long gone. You understand what I'm saying." 

Yes, actually I do. Having worked for the Safety and Security Department for over 5 years now, I know exactly what you're saying. 

I squinted one eye and then shrugged both shoulders. "No problem, man," and walked away. 

Returning to the present, I finally put on all my clothes. Today, I had no time to waste. I had to find that shipment and figure out a way out of here. I was just about to leave when something felt off. The bathroom was relatively empty, yet there were so many pipes running. All the showers were on full blast, and the steam created by all the hot water was almost blinding. I looked over both my shoulders and noticed only a few guys behind me. Two of them were leaving, so that left one. I turned to grab my shoes and head for the exit, but the feeling persisted. Something was definitely going on. And I didn't intend to stick around... 

Wait, is that Alex? 

I strained to see through the steamy mist created by the shower to identify the figure a couple of stalls down. As my eyes adjusted, I could definitely make out Alex's figure. 

What is he still doing here? And why is he being guarded, no, caged between three guys in the shower area? Some more guys were coming in, some of them just standing in the corners pretending to be doing something. This one guy, in particular, wasn't even pretending at all. He was just standing there, waiting. Waiting for what? And then it hit me. 

They're waiting for me to leave! 

Oh shit! 

This is not how I wanted to spend my morning. Alex turned around and finally caught on to what was happening. He glanced at me, and our eyes met. I had my shoes on, and there wasn't much time left for stalling. He got out of the shower and grabbed a towel. I caught a glimpse of his face as I scanned the room with my eyes, checking for any incoming threats. He looked afraid and appeared to be shaking... 

"Yo Alex, how much longer do you expect me to wait?" 

He looked up and quickly caught on to what I was trying to do. He momentarily hesitated, considering whether or not to accept the out I was offering. He swallowed and then shouted back, "Unlike you, I think it's important to wash my body with soap and water!" 

I laughed and quickly responded. "Whatever, man, just hurry!" 

Well, at least I can say this for him: the kid has wit. 

I positioned myself at the door and waited for him to get dressed and put on his footwear. During that time, no one left the bathroom, and he faced a minor deterrent on his way out. The glances were enough to make their intentions clear. They weren't over what he did yesterday, and they intended to make him pay. 

We walked out of the shower and headed towards the lunchroom in silence. When we finally arrived, we each picked up a tray, got food, and walked over to the nearest empty table to sit down. 

"Thank you," he said. 

"For what?" I asked. 

"You know damn well what I'm talking about. They were going to murder me and probably make it look like an accident." 

"Why so negative? The nice gentlemen could've just wanted to have a friendly chat with you. For all we know, the 'steam' could have just been there to set the mood. Ever thought of that, huh?" 

Instead of responding, he just looked at me with a straight face and narrowed eyes. 

"Not a fan of jokes, huh?" I continued. 

He sighed, took a bite of his sandwich, and had a drink of his orange juice before saying, "They're not going to stop, you know. I broke their precious little rule, and for that, they're going to make me pay." 

He's right, I thought. They probably won't stop trying to kill him. But the real question is why I am helping him. I'm starting to think that I want to die. 

I stopped eating and looked at him sideways. "Then I guess we'll just have to stick together, won't we?" 

"Hey, look who it is!" a voice interrupted. "I'm glad to see you're still with us. You had me worried for a second there." This unfamiliar face slid right between me and Alex, and my blood began to boil. 

I slowly removed the unwelcome hand he had placed on my shoulder before asking, "Do I know you?" 

"This is Duran," Alex quickly responded. "And that's guy number 2; I didn't care for his name." 

I looked up to see the old-timer from the shower just moments away from sitting down before us with a tray of food. "The name's Raymond, and my, my, my... haven't you two made a name for yourselves? In less than 48 hours, you've managed to become the most feared and the most hated individuals in the prison." 

"No guessing there as to who's who?" Duran jokingly nudged my arm. "Am I right?" He snickered. 

"So what, everyone's out to get something from us?" I asked the old man, tilting my head to the side. 

Duran smiled slightly and responded, "Well, yes and no. There was an order to things before you came here, and so far, it seems neither of you wants to play by the books. So while there is much talk of wanting to kill you, there is also much talk of wanting to join you. We'll just have to see how things play out, won't we?" 

Is that so? 

"Yeah, what's it to you?" Alex inquired. The stench of his distrust towards Duran and Raymond was so strong it burnt my nostrils. Yet, at the same time, he seemed somewhat accommodating, as if he liked having them around for information. Duran finally took a seat beside Raymond, and I realized that this relationship might prove useful. 

Today was my first day on the job. The factory made up about 30% of the prison and operated on two levels: Sublevel 1 and the ground floor. There were three areas: Shipment Delivery and Clearance, Inventory, and Manufacturing. Alex worked in manufacturing, and I was down in Inventory, but I wasn't too concerned about him. It would be very stupid for anyone to try anything in the work area, especially in manufacturing where there were so many guards and cameras. 

Working in inventory allowed me some level of freedom as it was only given to those with menial offenses. The real criminals were given the harsher tasks with strict supervision. The computer generated a list of stocks that needed to be checked in at a certain time and printed out the sheet for each Inventory clerk. The shipments brought in the materials for manufacturing, and I got to examine the structure of Sublevel 1 each time I went down there. 

Each shipment room required a passcode to enter, which the AI automatically entered once you ticked it as the next item on your list. There were cameras pointed at every single door, with an additional camera inside every room except the bathroom. 

Even if I found the room, there was no way to get in and out of it without being seen, unless the cameras and the AI were powered off. And the cameras only shut down when work was over, and we were all sent back to our cells. 

How am I going to do this? 

During lunch, I locked myself in a bathroom stall to think instead of going to lunch with the others. It always helped me to find a quiet, secluded area when I needed to concentrate on solving a problem. 

"Is that when it happened?" Alaya reached out for answers. 

"Yeah, that's when I saw them." 

Thud Bang 

"I'm going to ask you again, and you better not have the same answer. Why is there radio silence?" 

"I don't know anything!" 

I hoisted my feet above the ground, covered my mouth and nose with my left hand, and balanced myself on the toilet seat to avoid being found. I leaned forward a bit and peeped through the creases of the bathroom door. Although shocked, I wasn't surprised. I had already known there was something strange about their appearance here. But wait, is that... a guard? 

"What do you mean you don't know?" The twins both stepped up and gripped the guard by an arm each, and to my amazement, they literally hoisted him off the ground and held him about 5 feet in the air. The guard was not a lightweight by any means. He was a pudgy man weighing about 260lbs. Suffice to say, they shouldn't have been able to lift the guard and hold him with what appeared to be relative ease. 

"I said I don't know anything, I swear! I just came back from vacation, it doesn't even end until next week, and I'm not supposed to be here." 

"Yeah, well, neither are we." 

Twin number 1 stretched out his right arm, pressed down hard on his U.I, then placed it to his mouth and spoke. "Come in, the shipment has been delivered. Requesting details for departure; I repeat, requesting details for departure." 

Static 

They both turned to him, then echoed, "Nothing..." 

"I don't know what's happening, I swear," the guard pleaded. 

Having apparently heard enough from the guard, twin number 1 tossed him to the side and punched a hole straight through the wall. 

What the fuck... 

They hovered over him, and he whimpered in fright. "You have 24 hours to come up with a solution, or we're going public!" snarled twin number 1. 

The second twin picked him up, brushed off his uniform, and said, "If they think for a second that the Briston twins are going out with the rest of these scumbags, they better think again!" 

I heard their footsteps get quieter and quieter as they began to leave. 

"Clean this mess up!" was shouted back to the guard, and then the door was shut.