incarcerated

6.

when word spread to the warden that brett was not present at work or in his bunk for the nightly count, worry inevitably washed over him. he sent two guards on a search for him and paced around his office, chewing on his nails. there was no way brett intentionally missed count and work. and that meant he was either in danger or he was hurt. eddy couldn't deal with either.

it took fifteen minutes for the guards to find brett unconscious in the bathroom stall. he resembled a corpse as he laid on the floor, body crumpled into a helpless ball. his body was covered in bruises and blood had stained the back of his pants and his shirt.

"shit," the older guard mumbled, crossing his arms as he stared at brett in the floor.

"yeah, shit." the other one replied.

"you want to carry him to the warden's office first or just take him to medical?"

the second guard paused for a moment and contemplated both of their options. he decided to ask eddy over the radio.

"co kirk for warden chen," he said. his voice was shaky. the radio crackled and eddy's rough voice came through.

"go for warden."

"we've got eyes on yang. he's pretty busted up. unconscious. should we take him to medical or to you first?"

the line was silent for several seconds.

    "take him to medical."

    eddy slammed his radio down on his desk and took a deep breath. anger flooded his veins and he paced around again, the veins in his forehead bulging.

    yes, he was angry that brett was hurt. but he was more angry that there was nothing he could do about it. he had no idea who had done it or the extent of brett's injuries, and any further investigation would put brett in more danger. the best thing he could do for brett was the absolute last thing he wanted: leaving him alone.

    how could he do that? how could he let an innocent man live in his prison without helping him out?

    all he wanted was to go see him. despite the brevity of their friendship, or whatever their relationship was, and the intensity of brett's dismay towards eddy, the warden cared deeply for the prisoner. but, just like helping him, going to see him could make things worse.

    eddy took a deep breath.

    "i'll just stop by," he told himself. "i do that for severely injured prisoners anyways."

    he headed towards the medical unit with a scowl on his tanned face, hands shoved in his jacket pockets. no one spoke to him. fury radiated off of his tall figure in waves and he made no effort to hide it. eddy chen was pissed.

    upon walking into the unit, eddy discovered that he had hugely underestimated the severity of brett's injuries. the sight of him unconscious in that unstable bed made eddy's blood boil. he clenched his fists and searched for the doctor.

    "what the fuck happened here?" he demanded when he found him. the man in the white jacket raised his eyebrows and sighed.

    "well, we can't know for sure until yang wakes up and tells us. but, based on his injuries, i'm going to assume that it was rape and assault."

    eddy froze.

    "rape?" he repeated, his face paling. the doctor squinted at him, suspicious of his emotional reaction.

    "yes, sir. his anal cavity was ruptured and we found semen inside of him. it also appears that he hasn't been eating, but that's not surprising."