CHAPTER 4 — The Trap
The entire prison respected David after the incident in the yard.
But not everyone admired him.
Some inmates had just lost the only thing that kept the prison under their control.
Victor Carter's humiliation had weakened the fear that ruled Blackridge.
For the first time in years, smaller prison gangs stopped paying protection money.
Arguments broke out.
Old rivalries resurfaced.
Someone wanted Victor replaced.
Late that night, inside Cell Block C, a secret meeting took place in the laundry room.
Five gang leaders stood in silence.
One of them, Marcus Hale, slammed a homemade knife onto the table.
"Victor is getting soft."
"He let a guard embarrass him."
"If he won't take back control..."
"...we will."
Meanwhile, David walked the midnight rounds alone.
Most officers avoided Cell Block C after dark.
David never did.
As he passed the maintenance corridor, the lights suddenly flickered.
One camera went offline.
Then another.
Inside the control room, alarms flashed across the monitor.
"Camera failure in Sector Seven."
Before backup could respond...
The steel maintenance door burst open.
Three masked inmates rushed David from behind.
One swung a sharpened metal pipe.
Another wrapped a chain around his arm.
The third lunged with a homemade blade.
The hallway exploded into violence.
David ducked beneath the first strike.
The pipe smashed against the concrete wall.
Without throwing a punch, David twisted the attacker's wrist.
The weapon clattered across the floor.
The second inmate charged.
David stepped aside.
The man crashed shoulder-first into the steel door.
The third attacker came from behind.
At the last possible second...
A giant hand grabbed the attacker's collar.
Victor Carter.
He slammed the inmate against the wall so hard the homemade knife slid across the floor.
Everyone froze.
Even David looked surprised.
Victor stared at the attackers.
"You idiots."
"No one touches him."
The attackers backed away.
Marcus Hale stepped from the shadows.
"You'd protect a guard?"
Victor's eyes turned cold.
"I'm protecting this prison."
Marcus smiled.
May you like
"Then you're no longer our leader."
The war inside Blackridge had officially begun.
