Teddy gave an aggravated sigh and shook his head.
“Even so, lots of other cells were open in my block. I know that counselor put him with me on purpose. He’s always trying to push my goddamn hand,” he muttered as he took a greedy mouthful of eggs. “He knows I don’t take cellies.”
“I never understood your aversion to taking a cellie. I know for a fact that you can handle yourself.” He paused. “I know your reputation just like everyone else in here knows it.”
Teddy looked down at his plate and frowned.
“That’s not the problem… The problem is that he’s wearing ink. He’s a skinhead. That fucking inbred Darrel is already trying to flex on me. It’s only a matter of time before it goes down.” He paused. “And judging by the looks I’ve gotten this morning, I know it’s going down soon.”
Maurice’s old tired eyes suddenly lit up with understanding. He sat the paper down and stared at Teddy, frowning.
“I wish I could offer a peaceful solution but nothing is coming to mind. When it comes to their type, you’re out of options. At one time I’d say there was a chance for peace, but…”
“Yeah, yeah, I know. That bridge was burnt a long time ago,” he muttered.
“Is that why you’re making some new friends?”
Teddy looked confused and glanced up at Maurice.
“What are you talking about?”
“Well, I see Turtle loaded you up today,” Maurice said as he pointed down at Teddy’s tray with one of his crooked fingers, disfigured by age and arthritis. “I know as well as you do that nothing in here is free. Don’t tell me you’re thinking about giving the island boys a little sugar.”
“Oh fuck off, you dirty old goat,” Teddy said, chuckling.
Maurice laughed.
“You know I’d never ride with a car this late in the game and the last thing I would do is hide behind the island brothers. Turtle offered but I think he was just talking sideways.”
Maurice laughed again.
“Have you known him to ever talk otherwise? His crew can’t protect itself much less defend you from the white boys,” Maurice said as he cracked his neck and stretched.
“Yeah, if it’s legit, it’s an offer I’m going to refuse.”
“Well you sure didn’t say no to the extra eggs.”
“But I like eggs,” Teddy said with a grin. He nodded towards the paper and shoveled a spoonful of runny eggs into his mouth. “Is anything interesting happening in the world today?”
“No, just the usual lies,” Maurice said.
“About what? The flu?”
Maurice nodded and showed him the headline: “CDC: STATE QUARANTINES ARE EFFECTIVE. H7N9 IS CONTAINED; SENSELESS ‘KILLER FLU’ HYSTERIA SPREADS UNCHECKED.” Another story’s headline on the side column read: “EMERGENCY ROOM ADMITTANCE SPIKES AS SEASONAL FLU CASES SKYROCKET NATIONWIDE.”
He folded the paper and put it away.
“It’d be naïve to believe that they contained that new bug to just a few states on the east coast while conveniently the rest of the nation just so happens to have an uptick in regular seasonal flu cases,” Maurice said. “I think things are a lot worse than they’re letting on. I think that they lost control of whatever they were trying to contain and now they’re just trying to keep people pacified with misinformation until everyone is too sick to do much of anything about it. The last things they want are riots and chaos.”
Teddy ate in silence for a few minutes, staring down at his tray.
“I don’t know. I’ve never been much for conspiracies. Frankly I’m tired of hearing about it,” Teddy eventually said after he chugged down his water and put down his utensils. “I’ve seen bad flu bugs. I’ve had bad flu bugs, but I’m still alive and I’m still kicking.” He paused. “It doesn’t matter anyway.”
“Why do you say that?” Maurice asked.
“Because outside of SHU, I don’t exactly have any travel plans.”
“Well, at least by the time you get out of SHU, this should all be over,” Maurice reflected. He reached over and tapped a finger on the newspaper. “Solitary doesn’t sound like a bad place to be if you don’t want to fall ill. Less people mean less exposure.”
“I can think of a few places I’d rather be.”
“Bravery in the face of illness comes easily to those who are healthy.”
Teddy raised an eyebrow.
“Come on Maurice… You’re too damn old to fall for petty prison gossip. Whatever is out in New York isn’t going to come in here.”
Maurice grinned and gestured towards the crowded dining hall.
Multiple men were hunched over the table, coughing into the crooks of their arms and blowing their noses into their shirts.
“Look around,” he said, “it’s already here.”
Teddy rolled his eyes.
“Yeah, Maurice, it’s called the flu. It’s seasonal. It happens every year. Hell, the paper even admitted this year a bad one is going around. People will get sick and then they’ll get better.”
“I’m sure they thought the same thing about the Spanish Flu at the turn of the century.”
Teddy leaned over the table and emphasized his point.
“Maurice, Jesus Christ, listen to yourself talk! People aren’t dying, they’re just sick. New York or wherever that new bug is? They’re the ones who have to worry. We’re fine.” He smirked. “The seasonal flu isn’t going to kill anyone in here except for your old mummified ass.”
Maurice didn’t look amused and Teddy’s grin fell flat.
“I don’t think this is seasonal and I don’t think it is benign. Just look at the steps they’re taking.”
“What steps?” Teddy asked.
“The phones are down for one.”
“It wouldn’t be the first time,” Teddy dismissed.
“Yes, true, but when you factor in the fact that visitation has been canceled it seems a little bit too coincidental,” Maurice added as he picked at the last crumbs on his tray. “All we have are the televisions, and some of those channels are even falling off the air. The big twenty-four hour news stations like CNN and Fox feel flat and even scripted at times. I’ve heard multiple guards talking about a looming national lockdown.”
Teddy chuckled and held his hands out.
“Okay, I’ll bite,” Teddy said. “I get what you’re saying, but it still doesn’t make any sense. If they were trying to limit our information from the outside, then why does the mail still come? People don’t write letters anymore? The mail hasn’t stopped coming. Come on Maurice… You’re grasping at straws.”
Maurice stared at him.
“Have you been to mail call lately?” he asked.
“No, you know that I don’t get anything so why would I bother?”
“Well if you did go, you’d notice that the mail bags are awfully light these days. All I see are magazines, lying newspapers, and junk mail. Not many letters... I’m thinking the prison administration has been filtering through the mail before it hits the cellblock.”
Teddy thought about it a moment and then shrugged.
“You’re overthinking things and making up conspiracies. I get that you’re worried, but just fall back on your routine,” Teddy said. “You’ll calm down and this flu will pass.”
As if on cue, Maurice’s wristwatch beeped. He tucked his paper under his arm, stood up, and picked up his empty tray.
Maurice looked at Teddy with heavy sadness in his eyes.
“Ah yes… The routine…” Maurice said. “Sometimes the old con blinders start to fit a little too comfortably, don’t they?” He paused. “Will I see you in the library today?”
Teddy glanced over his shoulder and noticed that the Aryans were staring at him as they got up and walked away with their trays. He frowned and looked back at Maurice.
“No, not today,” Teddy said. “I reckon I’ll just go back to my unit and get this over with. I’m going to talk to my cellie and Darrel. Maybe we can work something out, bu
t knowing Darrel, most likely not. Either way, looks like I’m headed to SHU.” He paused. “I’ll see you when I get out, old man.”
Maurice had a thin smile as he shook his head.
“No, you probably won’t,” he said. “Historically, old birds like me don’t do too well with pandemics. Take care of yourself in the new world, friend.”
Before Teddy could respond, Maurice took his tray to the drop-off station near the dining hall’s exit and walked out into the corridor.
Teddy frowned and watched him leave. He knew that Maurice had a tendency to work himself up, but he had never seen the old man so shaken up.
“The dining hall is now closed,” a voice boomed from the overhead speakers. “The dining hall is now closed! Clear the dining hall!”
The other inmates slowly collected their trays and shuffled towards the drop-off station.
The guards started barking orders to hurry the inmates along.
“Let’s go! Let’s go! Walk and talk gentlemen! Walk and talk!” one of the officers shouted.
Teddy sighed, stood up with his tray, and tossed it in the drop station. He followed the others out into the main corridor and waited in line as the group funneled through the metal detector one at a time.
Off to the side, standing just outside the first security grille, two worried-looking associate wardens wearing cheap suits were huddled together with the captain and the shift lieutenant. All four men were holding a piece and paper and shaking their heads as they scanned the paper multiple times.
Teddy stared at the men and watched them as they kept looking down at the papers they were holding. They all appeared frightened.
The corridor officer, Ruiz, caught Teddy’s wandering eyes and quickly pointed towards the door.
“Quit gawking! Get outside! Clear the area!” Ruiz ordered.
Teddy looked away, cleared the metal detector, and stepped outside into the blistering morning heat. He shoved his hands into his pockets and casually walked along the pathway towards his unit’s sally port.
Officer Coor was standing outside the housing unit leaning against the wall, coughing. He was drenched and his face was flushed.
“Everything alright, boss?” Teddy asked as he neared the unit.
Coor waved a hand in the air, wheezing, nodding.
“Yeah, it’s just a little cold, Sanders. Old lady got it, my kid got it, and now I guess I got it.”
“Could be that flu everyone’s harping on about,” Teddy suggested.
“Nah, we all got our vaccinations a month ago and we sure as hell didn’t travel to the east coast recently,” Coor said. “It’s a cold.”
Teddy shrugged.
“Stay home next time,” Teddy said as he stepped inside. “If I had the choice, I sure as hell wouldn’t be here.”
Coor nodded and wiped the sweat off of his clammy forehead with the back of his hand.
“Yeah with the way I’m feeling don’t expect me to see me tomorrow,” Coor muttered as he stayed outside.
Teddy scowled and shook his head. The unit guard was clearly out of commission; just as he expected, the hacks would be useless if anything happened. He’d have to hold his own for a bit longer than he’d like.
He sighed.
“I’m getting too old for this shit,” he mumbled to himself.
He scanned the inside of the unit as he slowly made his way up the iron staircase towards the upper tier. A handful of people were still sitting on their plastic chairs staring up at the televisions, but the vast majority was either in recreation or education. The tension in the air was palpable.
As soon as the other inmates saw him they took their plastic chairs, walked to their respective cells, stepped inside, and closed the door behind them. The entire dayroom cleared within seconds while Coor stood outside completely unaware.
As he neared his cell, he noticed that his door was cracked halfway open.
Teddy cautiously approached and pushed the door all the way open with his foot, staring inside.
Andy was sitting on the lower bunk, Teddy’s bed, flipping through a stack of personal papers he brought with him from the bus. Teddy’s bedding had been thrown up onto the upper bunk along with a tattered mattress.
“Hey, cellie,” Andy said with a grin as he looked at him standing in the doorway. He put the papers down and stood up with his chest out. “I hope you don’t mind, but I prefer the lower bunk so I took the liberty and moved myself.”
Teddy chuckled, shook his head, and stepped inside the cell. He closed the door behind him.
“You’re a cocky little son-of-a-bitch, aren’t you?” Teddy mused as he stepped towards Andy.
Andy stood in the middle of the cell.
“Who put you up to it? Darrel? It’s a childish move especially since it was done behind my back. It sounds like his handiwork. I came here to talk, but from the look of things there isn’t much left to talk about is there?”
“We don’t have anything to talk about,” Andy said sternly.
The overhead speakers in the unit crackled with static.
“Attention, yard and quarters, this is the warden speaking. All inmates return to their housing unit immediately,” a voice boomed from the PA. “This is an institutional lockdown. All inmates return to their units immediately and prepare for mandatory count!”
In the distance, throughout the compound, inmates started shouting obscenities.
Teddy and Andy glared at each other in silence.
“Well, well… I’m having Déjà vu. Sounds just like Beaumont the day before they started shipping us out,” Andy said. “Like it or not, it sounds like we’re going to be locked in together for a while so I suggest you make your goddamn bed and quit eyeballing me, bitch.”
Teddy took another defiant step towards him and balled his fists.
Andy didn’t seem alarmed.
“You can cut the act,” Andy said. “Darrel already talked to some people. He told me you’re aiming to go to a lower security. You can’t afford to get in trouble so you’re not going to do jack shit, pussy.” He paused and pointed at the top bunk. “Now stop eyeballing me and make your bed before you piss me off. It’s either that, or I beat your ass to the ground and have the guards drag you out of here. It’s your choice.”
Teddy reached up and scratched his chin, chuckling. He looked down and shook his head.
Andy frowned.
“Did I say something funny? I’m not going to repeat myself, old man.”
“For someone who has spent so much time in the system, you’re a stupid fucker,” Teddy said. “You actually act like I have a choice when you know that you already forced me to do what I’m about to do.”
Teddy quickly reached up, grabbed Andy by the shoulders, and drove his knee as hard as he could into the man’s abdomen.
All of the air expunged out of Andy’s lungs as he collapsed forward. He gasped for breath as he reached up and snatched Teddy’s shirt collar.
Teddy reared his head back, head-butted Andy in the face, and broke the man’s grip off of his collar; all of the buttons on Teddy’s shirt snapped off in the process.
Blood shot out of Andy’s broken nose and his lower lip split open. Dazed and confused, he staggered backwards, nearly tripping on his own two feet.
Feeling the effects of the head-butt himself, Teddy stumbled back, khaki shirt covered with Andy’s blood. His vison was blurry and his ears rang. He reached inside his pocket and pulled out the fiberglass shiv as he tried to reorient himself.
Andy’s eyes widened at the sight of the shiv. He charged towards Teddy with blood running down his face, with a wild cry.
Teddy jumped at him, thrusting the crude knife forward towards Andy’s abdomen.
Andy narrowly escaped the blade as he twisted to the side at the last second. He slammed his shoulder into Teddy’s chest and knocked him back against the wall, pinning him there. He delivered a volley of blows into Teddy’s stomach, striking him as hard as he could.
&nb
sp; Teddy gasped for breath as intense fiery pain radiated throughout his core. He held the shiv up high and brought it down as hard as he could behind Andy’s right shoulder.
Andy tore away from Teddy and let out a feral cry as his right arm fell limp.
Teddy lost his grip on the bloody shiv as Andy pulled back.
Andy staggered into the middle of the cell, weapon still lodged deep in his back, soaked with blood. He moved with the grace of a drunkard, barely able to stand let alone fight.
Teddy reached forward, grabbed Andy by the back of his neck, and slammed his face against the stainless steel sink.
Blood spurted everywhere as Andy’s forehead cracked open.
The knob on the sink flew off and a small geyser of hot water shot up against the ceiling.
Andy slumped down and collapsed on the toilet. He rolled to the side and landed hard against the floor.
The humid air reeked with the coppery stench of blood and the musky tinge of perspiration.
Teddy stumbled towards the cell door, shoved it open, and lurched outside, battered and bruised. He leaned against the iron railing as he struggled to catch his breath.
Andy lay motionless in the cell behind him.
Bloody water started to trickle out of the cell and dribble down off the upper tier.
Retuning inmates funneled into the unit, glanced up at Teddy, and hurried to their cells without hesitation.
Coor finally stepped inside and glanced around the unit with alarm; inmates never rushed to their cells when a lockdown was called. He looked up at Teddy and realized why the others were so quick to comply and not get caught in the ensuing crossfire. His eyes widened. He grabbed his radio, coughing.
“Sanders! Goddammit! You couldn’t make it one fucking day? Really? Get down on the ground and place your hands on top of your head!” he hoarsely shouted.
Teddy slowly started to raise his hands.
Coor shook his head and keyed his radio mic.
“Bravo A to control! I have a–”
As if on cue, four burley white inmates ran out from one of the cells near the sally port and quickly jumped on the guard, delivering a barrage of punches and kicks.
Coor curled up in a fetal position and shielded his face as they surrounded him.
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