Pirate Assassin

Page 18

Events had proved Zack right. He had integrated himself subtly into the prison without any more show. The other prisoners knew he was a ruthless fighter and while there were a few groups of prisoners worried about their authority over their turf, Zack made it blindingly clear that he was not part of any prison politics. If they left him alone, he would do the same. Didn't like that arrangement? There were already more than a few people who were nursing broken bones in the prison infirmary. However, Zack was in no part a troublemaker; most of the fights were not initiated by him. This trait allowed him to get on well with the usual guards patrolling the cell. It was a relationship that was purely amiable, not one full of favours on one end like what most television shows portrayed. However, Zack's life was far from the quiet solitude it sounded like. Thousands of questions popped into his head everytime he trained. Who was the beggar man? What did he want with him? But most importantly, how do you fight a guy who can apparently stop time?? It was the sole cause of his sleepless nights and his festering rage. Zack still did his 'fury stare', as the other prisoners termed it as heat seemed to eminate from him as he sat down with his hands clasped in front of his mouth staring at a spot. They stayed well away from him when he was in one of those moods. However, it was in one of those moods when a guard tapped him on the shoulder, earning a collective ripple of unease throughout the cafeteria as the prisoners had lunch. Zack slowly turned his head. It was a guard he knew, named Harty. "Ying, there's someone here to see you and don't worry," he said quickly when he saw Zack's eyes narrow, "its not your parents. Its a girl. Around your age," Zack nodded and followed Harty to the visiting room. When he entered, his eyebrows almost jumped of his face. Mikaella had come to visit him.

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Ever since Zack had been arrested, Mikaella had been shocked. Like so many others, the thought that Zack had murdered Theo in cold blood actually seemed feasible. It took a moment but she dismissed the idea. She knew enough of her childhood friend that he would never do such a thing. Sure, he hated with a burning intensity but death was something Zack took seriously, one he joked that all his suicidal thinking had made him see. It was a fate he wouldn't wish on anyone except the most evil of people. She was thinking about what to do when Wayne's words, spoken to her so long ago came rushing back,

"So Mikaella, please promise me that you will be there for him when the time comes,"

And she had promised. Wayne was no longer here, for some strange reason that he never revealed so now it was up to her to help be a friend to him. It wasn't as easy as it sounded. Convincing her parents was the main problem. There was no way on earth that her parents were going to let her visit a crazed killer; even after the extensive arguments she put up, they denied her request. She kept trying until one day she finally put her foot down and said, "Either you bring me there and you can 'protect' me yourselves or I'll just take a bus and go there myself." They didn't take her seriously. So one fine Saturday afternoon, she grabbed an early lunch, hopped onto a bus and got down at the only prison in the city. The guards were a bit reluctant about letting a lone girl enter the visiting room to meet up with a murderer. To her surprise, however, the arguments she put forth worked better with the police officers than with her parents. It was due to that that she was nervous as she waited. There was no one else in the room, except for the one guard stationed there. Suddenly, she began to doubt. Was he really the deranged killer he was accused as and had the prison in his thrall? She had read about such things in books. No, she thought, I know he's not that kind of person, I just know it. Nevertheless, she took a deep breath as the door on the other side of the glass creaked open.