“This is Sergeant Zeke Chambers. He served two years in Afghanistan. Lost his leg to a bomb blast.”
Zeke grinned, then patted what Rory assumed was his injured leg. “I’ve nailed down a natural stride though, best prosthetic money can buy.”
He stepped forward and held out his hand. Captain shook it and got to his feet.
“How long you in here for?” Captain asked.
For the first time since knowing him, Rory heard excitement in Captain’s voice. He even smiled, a proper smile that lifted his dulled eyes.
“I’ve got eighteen months left.” Zeke said. “Want to get some water?”
Captain nodded. “Sure.”
Rory smiled at Sebastian. “Thanks.”
“No problem.”
He sat down in the seat Captain had been in, then grimaced, and shifted to the one beside it. “Sweaty. How are you today?”
Rory raised his shoulders. “Other than being bored, I can’t complain.”
“Bored? I can help you with that…”
“I’m not playing cards with you.”
Sebastian snorted. “Fine. How about chess?”
“Chess?”
“That’s what I said. You any good at chess?”
Rory shook his head. “No.”
“Neither am I…”
He waved Einstein and Damon over. Einstein had a chess board in his hands, and he placed it on the table and chuckled.
“Here we go…” he mumbled.
“I’m supposed to believe you’re awful at chess?” Rory muttered.
Damon laughed. “He is, really awful.”
Einstein sighed. “I tried to teach him, but he’s hopeless.”
“I’m not buying it.” Rory muttered.
Sebastian rolled his eyes. “You’re bored, right?”
“Yeah.”
“So let’s have a few games.”
Rory sighed through his nose. “Fine.”
They played chess. Rory played badly, but Sebastian played even worse. It was three games to Rory when Einstein cleared his throat to get Rory’s attention.
“This is the perfect way to win back your phone cards.”
Rory lifted his eyebrow. “Yeah?”
Damon nodded enthusiastically. “Yeah, you’re wiping the floor with him.”
“I haven’t got anything to gamble with.”
Sebastian pursed his lips. “I’ll tell you what, you win, you get six phone cards, I win … and I get a back rub.”
Rory leaned back in his chair. “You want a backrub?”
“Hell, yes.”
Einstein shook his head. “Don’t worry, boy, no chance of that, he’s awful at chess.”
“Yeah?”
Damon smiled. “You’ve got this.”
Sebastian stuck his hand out across the table. “Deal?”
“Deal,” Rory said, shaking on it.
As soon as they’d shook, Damon burst out laughing, and Einstein muttered ‘stupid’ under his breath.
Sebastian looked at his friends. “As I said, nothing going on in this one.”
“What?” Rory said.
Damon gave Rory a pitying look. “He’s the best chess player in here. No one will play him anymore.”
Sebastian winked. “I think you knew it, you just wanna touch me up.”
“No, I don’t.”
“You can start on my shoulders, maybe my thighs, too.” His eyes glinted, and he gave Rory a confident smile. “I’m already looking forward to it…”
Damon hastily set up the board, and Sebastian gestured for Rory to take the first move. He moved his pawn, and the game began.
Rory played the naïve guy perfectly, and Sebastian fell straight into his trap. The smirks and snorts from Damon and Einstein lessened, then stopped altogether.
Sebastian clutched his chin before each move, and his brow folded with more intense lines each time they went back and forth. Their game got a crowd, and a few guards stood close enough to watch.
Ollie came over at some point, but lost interest and disappeared with Teddy. The match lasted two hours, then Sebastian stood up abruptly, tilted his head at Rory, then admitted his defeat.
Rory held out his palm for the phone cards, and Sebastian slapped them down. He counted them, then handed three to Damon, and three to Einstein. They gawped at Rory in surprise.
Sebastian stepped away from the table, clutched his head, then rushed back and sat down. “Rematch?”
“Rematch.” Rory agreed.
They both jumped at the yell. Sebastian turned around lightning fast to see where the commotion was coming from. Guards went in Ollie and Teddy’s cell, and when they came out, they were dragging a thrashing and growling Teddy.
“Calm it, Teddy.” Sebastian shouted, but it had no effect.
In his current state, he was unreachable—spitting, and flinging his head side to side. He struggled like a wild animal, and the three officers trying to get him under control had no chance.
Teddy broke free and shoved one of the guards over. The alarm started to howl, and officers demanded everyone return to their cells. Teddy raised his hands, ready to fight the guards. His eyes were crazed, and he wanted blood. He swung his fist with brutal efficiency and caught the closest guard in the chest. He went down and didn’t get back up.
“Jesus, Teddy!” Sebastian yelled.
Rory spotted Ollie pressed against the opposite wall, wide-eyed with his lip wobbling. The rest of the inmates were slow to return to their cells, clearly wanting to watch as Teddy took on the guards. Four of them lined up, and one lay on the ground. Their batons were out and ready for Teddy’s next attack.
He swung another punch, and the officers backed off fast.
Sebastian rocked on his heels, cursed, then strolled forward. The guards made a space for him to pass through, and he walked straight up to Teddy. He craned his neck forward, spoke close to Teddy’s ear, then suddenly he slumped, as if he were a puppet, and his strings had been cut. His arms sagged at his sides, and he lowered his head.
Sebastian retreated, then the guards launched at Teddy. He didn’t fight them, he let them throw him to the ground.
“Come on.” Sebastian said, giving Rory an encouraging push. “Back to the cell.”
Rory hopped onto his bed as soon as they got inside, but he didn’t curl in a ball in the corner, he sat with his legs hanging down.
“So you’re a chess genius?” Sebastian muttered.
“Yeah, and believe it or not, I’m not an idiot.”
Sebastian smirked. “I didn’t say you were. Who taught you to play?”
Rory bit his lip, then mumbled, “My grandad at first, then my dad.”
“I hate to admit it, but you’re good. Really good.”
“I beat your sorry ass.”
Sebastian’s eyebrows shot up, and Rory thought he’d crossed a line, but then an amused rumble escaped Sebastian’s lips. “You did that time, but next time…”
“I’ll beat you again.”
“I like your confidence.”
Rory listened to the shouts, and clunks of gates. “What are they doing with Teddy?”
“He’ll be thrown into solitary. I swear he’s spent more time there over the years than in the wing.”
“What did you say to calm him down?”
Sebastian hummed, then looked up. “I told him he was terrifying Ollie.”
“He likes Ollie?”
“Yeah. Teddy, he’s complicated. I don’t know what that was about though.”
Rory swallowed uncomfortably and averted his gaze.
“But you do, don’t you?”
“I think it had something to do with maggots.”
“What?”
“He had maggots in the cell, was keeping them in a tub on the windowsill and they freaked Ollie out. He was going to ask the guards to clear them out.”
“Maggots?” Sebastian mumbled, shaking his head. “Well, I guess Teddy’s even more complicated than I thought.�
��
“He’s not gonna, ya know, hurt Ollie if he finds out he was involved.”
“I told you before, he won’t hurt a hair on Ollie’s head.”
“Good.”
“I take it Captain’s made an appointment with the shrink?”
“He’s not very enthusiastic about it, but yeah.”
“He’s good, he’ll help.”
“Have you ever gone to see him?”
Sebastian snorted. “No, but I haven’t gone through hell and back. My mind isn’t fractured, it’s focused, fully intact.”
“Focused on what?”
“Revenge.”
“Revenge on who?”
Sebastian tipped his head back and chuckled. “The guy that put me in here.”
“You’re here because you killed Lester.”
“But why did I kill him? Because some asshole inspector got to him, turned him against me.”
“Who?”
Sebastian shook his head. “His name’s not important.”
“What are you gonna do to him?”
Sebastian’s eyes glinted. “The last thing he’ll hear before his world comes crashing down, will be a pop.”
He sat down on his bed, out of view.
Rory lay down and nipped at his nails.
Chapter Seven
Hamish leaned over the table. He pouted his lips, pushing up his moustache. “Well?”
“He’s out to get you.” Rory mumbled.
“Are you sure?” Morris asked. She was leaning against the door, staring at Rory with her usual disdain. They were in a small room near the booking in area, saved for private visits. If anyone asked, he was to say his uncle was visiting.
“Yeah.”
“What’s he planning?” Morris asked.
Rory shook his head. “I don’t know. He mentioned a pop.”
“A pop?”
“‘The last thing he hears before his world comes crashing down, will be a pop.’”
“A gun, does he mean a gun?” Morris demanded.
“I don’t know.”
“Come on, Rory.”
“Look, it’s not easy finding a way in.”
“There’s one in your face and one in your ass.”
“Oi!” Hamish grunted. He flashed an angry look at Morris. “None of that talk.”
She rolled her eyes, then studied her nails.
Hamish turned back to Rory. “Does he want to kill me?”
“I asked, but he didn’t answer. But … I think that’s where his head’s at.”
Hamish grunted. “He said a big bang. What if he doesn’t mean a bomb, but a gun?”
“He’s been involved with both illegal firearms, and bombs,” Morris mumbled, “it could be either, but if he wanted you shot, surely…”
“Surely what?” Hamish asked.
“He would’ve got someone to do it.”
Rory bit his lip. “I get the impression, whatever he’s planning, he wants to do it himself.”
“Sebastian’s after you,” Morris said, “you’ve got to go into hiding.”
“No—”
“But William—Inspector. You’re in danger.” Morris pushed off from the door and rushed over.
“I’m not in danger yet.”
“He’s threatening your life.”
“He’s still got eight months left.” Hamish argued. “It’s enough time to gather evidence against him. The second he steps out of those gates, we’ll arrest him again.”
Morris pulled a pained expression, then looked at Rory. “Surely you can see this is madness.”
Rory shrugged. “It’s the inspector’s decision. He’s got to own his choices.”
Hamish pressed his lips together and bobbed his head.
“Both idiots,” Morris hissed.
She turned around, then rushed out of the room. Hamish got to his feet and called after her, but she didn’t come back.
“Find out all you can, Rory. My life depends on it.”
“Yes, sir.”
****
Rory hurried through the wing to the gate that led to the yard. He sat down on a bench and clutched his side. The inmates were playing soccer again, the shirtless against the shirted. Rory leaned back and watched them play. They hooted, they celebrated, and sometimes they pushed their chests together and started a fight. The guards outside beat their batons on the wall and threatened to take the ball away.
The fighting ceased, and they were kicking the ball around as if the ruckus hadn’t happened.
“Hey…”
Rory glanced up at Ollie’s voice. “Hey, you all right?”
“Not really.”
He sat down and curled forward. “I’m a horrible person.”
“No, you’re not.”
“Did you see Teddy last night?”
Rory lowered his gaze. “You didn’t know he’d react like that. It’s your cell, too, and if you weren’t comfortable with them there, you had a right to say so.”
“He knocked that guard out, and he’s got two weeks in solitary.”
Rory clutched Ollie’s knee. “Look, he’s not gonna hurt you. Sebastian said he’s not like that and I believe him.”
“I’m not worried about him hurting me.”
“Then what?”
“When you went up to your cell, they handcuffed him, and got him off the floor. I looked at his face, and he looked devastated. He was crying.”
Rory saw the tears in Ollie’s eyes. “You didn’t know those maggots meant that much to him.”
“When I got convicted, I was terrified of going to prison. Knew I had nine years of pain and humiliation in store, and when we first walked in, I saw how some of the men looked at me. Fresh meat that they couldn’t wait to get their hands and whatever else on. But they won’t cross Teddy, and he hasn’t done anything to hurt me. He’s been nothing but nice, and that’s how I repaid him. I took something from him and made him sad. I hurt him.”
“You didn’t know.”
“You’ve got to help me make this right,” Ollie mumbled.
“How?”
“We’ve got to find more maggots.”
“What?” Rory blurted.
“That’s the only way I can make it up to him.”
“I’m not gonna go searching for maggots.”
“Please, Rory.”
“No way.”
Ollie glanced around. “I just need you to keep look out.”
“While you do what?”
“Go through the bins.”
He gestured to the two green barrels at the edge of the yard. Leftover food scraps went into them each day, and they were collected every two days. The smell was a health hazard, and when the wind blew from their direction, only the hardiest stayed outside.
“You screamed at the thought of touching a maggot the other day.”
“I know, they make me feel sick, but for Teddy, I’ll get some.”
“Not to mention, going through rotting food isn’t exactly hygienic.”
“You gonna help me, or what?”
Rory stared, hoping Ollie was only joking with him.
“Fine,” Ollie hissed, getting up.
“Wait, wait.” Rory said. “Okay, I’ll stand watch.”
The guards had their eyes fixed on the soccer match. Ollie and Rory trudged across the yard, trying to look casual, but Rory imagined they had failed miserably.
Rory stood in front of the barrels, and Ollie ducked behind him.
“Hurry up.” Rory muttered.
“What do you think I’m gonna do, search at a leisurely pace.”
Rory laughed, then grabbed his side. “Ouch.”
“Laughing hurts?”
“Yeah, it does.”
He heard a rustle and glanced back to see Ollie putting a plastic bag over his hand. “I doubt that’ll help.”
As soon as Ollie opened the first barrel, the smell intensified. Rory pressed his hand to his mouth, and mumbled, “Oh, my god.”
His eyes burned at the smell, and he blinked back tears.
“I’m gonna be sick,” Ollie called out.
“Don’t be, you’ll just have to wade through that as well.”
Ollie groaned, and spluttered, then the lid of the bin crashed down.
“I can’t do it, please, Rory—”
“No way in hell!”
He turned around and looked down at Ollie. He was on his knees, head resting against the bin. The sound of his sob hit Rory straight in the chest.
“I don’t want him to hate me.”
“He won’t, I promise you.”
“He will.”
Rory threw his head back and growled at the sky. “Fine, move out of the way.”
Ollie shot him a grateful look, then rushed to stand up. “Thanks, Rory—”
“Don’t, just don’t.”
Rory prepared himself to open the bin, but couldn’t do it. He looked down at the ground, then frowned at the grey wire. Not a wire, he realized, but a tail.
“Here.” Ollie said, passing him a bag.
Rory took it, then dropped down.
“The maggots are in the bin, not underneath it,” Ollie hissed.
Rory ignored him, pinched the tale through the bag, and pulled the rat out. It looked fresh, and he couldn’t smell it, but he could definitely see its body moving from maggots. He managed to get it in the bag and wrapped it up.
“Let’s go.”
Ollie’s eyebrows shot up. “Really, you’ve got some?”
“Sort of.”
“What do you mean sort of?”
Rory pushed the bag to Ollie’s chest. “Hide that under your jumper.”
Ollie didn’t ask any questions, he stuffed it under his jumper in a flash.
“Come on,” Rory said.
“Where we going?”
“Back to your cell to perform rodent surgery.”
“What?”
Rory rushed down the corridor and across the wing. He made a beeline for Teddy and Ollie’s cell, waited till he was inside, then pushed the door shut. Ollie took the bag out of his jumper, then peeked inside.
“It’s a flaming rat!”
He hurled it across the cell, and it hit the wall with a thump.
Rory tried to shush him, but ended up laughing. “I know, okay?”
“I want maggots, not a dead rat.”
“The maggots are inside the rat.”
He picked up the bag, and looked inside, but there was no movement.
The Rat Page 6