Panopticon

Bullseye

“It’s a good thing I went looking for her,” explained their host. “She was completely lost! I’m not sure how such a smart lady managed to end up near the generator, on the opposite side of the building, but I was able to point her in the right direction. We’ve had a little chat on the way back, too, and I think things are looking better now.”

Nathan had to agree with this assessment. As she followed Charon back into the room, Alex seemed remarkably cheerier than when she had left, and this looked to have raised the rich woman’s mood as well. Perhaps they would make progress today, after all.

“That’s us back together, then. Henry, how are the other group holding up?”

“They’ve just entered the main park.” The technician hadn’t so much as looked at Nathan in his employer’s absence, his hostility masked with a need to monitor the tour on his computer. “They passed a camera a few seconds ago.”

“Excellent. Impressive, isn’t it?” She turned to her security consultant, eager to boast. Henry could have rolled his eyes. “Everything in Panopticon is electronic, and most can be controlled by that computer. If there’s a security breach, our all-seeing-eye can alert me in seconds, and contain it with a few taps of his finger. If that fails, he has a direct link to support on the mainland. Tell me, Mr. Shah: have you ever seen anything like it?”

Nathan ignored his hostess’s question. He had been polite so far, but his focus had been diverted. Manners were important for his job, but they came a distant second when attention to detail was concerned. Details, in his profession, typically meant lives.

“Mr. Shah?”

“The red dots, the trackers; they’re moving.” He was right. It was only a little bit, and only a few of them, but there had been a definite increase in activity.

“Perhaps they’re just coming to greet the tour, to get their food.” Alex offered her explanation. “If this is the only human contact they get, you can’t blame them for a little excitement.”

“No. The tour’s only just started, and it’s not a regular time.” Henry looked at his boss. “The others couldn’t know they were coming.”

“Switch over to the cameras.” With a hint of panic creeping into her voice, Charon almost snapped at her technician.

The screens confirmed Nathan’s fears. Many hadn’t changed from when he’d arrived, but a large number were suddenly empty.

“Is this what it looks like?”

“That’s impossible.” Henry was staring at the screens, mouth open, and didn’t seem to be listening.

“Mr. Pike, please answer the man’s question.”

“You think the prisoners have escaped?” The technician turned to Nathan, who nodded. “You just might be right.”

“But how? You assured me the system was foolproof!” Charon raised her voice, but they could all hear it wavering as well. Her rage was just a cover for the fear underneath.

“It’s okay. We’ll be okay.” Henry sounded as if he was trying to convince himself, more than anyone else. “We’ll be safe in the Hub, there’s no way they can get up here. The system should already have called for help.”

The guests had all checked their phones, but there was no signal this far from the mainland. Charon had said that the park was in talks to change that in time for the public’s arrival, but for now they were fully reliant on the Hub’s own communications.

“What about the others?”

“Emma...” Alex, the civilian here, looked terrified.

“Something must have happened to the neck rings, I’ll try to reboot the system.” He entered a few commands, but then looked confused. “That’s strange: my controls have stopped working.”

“Mr. Shah, what do you advise?” Charon asked anxiously. “I supposed it’s fortunate that we have a security man here.”

“Sadly not,” explained Nathan. “I don’t put criminals in cells; I just check that the cells can hold them. So far, my assessment is negative.”

“Well, you know about breakouts, at least. Tell us what we can do.”

“I don’t think we’re safe here. If the system’s down, our communications might be too. We shouldn’t rely on that call for help; even if it did go through, which is far from certain, they’d take too long to arrive. We should try to leave, and get that helicopter back to England.” He began walking towards the door. “Prisons are designed to keep prisoners away from general public, you see; not away from the guards. The outer wall is always the strongest.

“If a breakout happens, the main gates shut but the people inside have to fend for themselves. Panopticon was designed so that there are many miles separating these killers from the general public, ensuring complete protection. From what I’ve seen, there are only a few floors separating them from us.”

“That’s not true.” Charon seemed horrified. “The general public are here. They’re on the tour.”

“With Mr. Durgan and Dr. Feng as well, yes. I won’t deny that they’re in danger, but there’s nothing we can do except endanger ourselves as well. The sooner we leave, the sooner we can send them help.”

“I’m not questioning your expertise, Mr. Shah, but doesn’t that seem a bit heartless? We all arrived here together. I feel that we should all leave here together.”

“You need more than just a heart to keep you alive, Mr. Charon. You need a brain. Mine tells me that we should leave, now.” Henry joined their hostess in moving to the door, but Alex remained still. “Dr. Cole? I’m sorry about your friend, but trapping yourself here won’t help her at all.”

The psychiatrist, though, didn’t appear to be listening.

“Why are they forming a ring?” She pointed to the screen, where the red dots had begun to link up in a circle.

The others followed her gaze, and gradually the significance of what they were seeing dawned upon them.

“They’re not forming a ring,” Henry finally explained, his breathing frantic. “They’re all converging on the centre of the map.”

 “What’s in the centre of the map?”

“The Hub,” said Charon. “Us.”