Changeling

Chapter 2

"Hey, Callie," called the voice of the woman in the cell next door. "What time is it?"

"It's time to shut up Irma," I scowled like she could see me then pulled the offensive blanket tighter around my head.

"Come on, Callie. Bunny Rabbit's on board today. I just want to know how much time we got." Oh God, Bunny Rabbit. I rolled and looked at the clock. I didn't keep track of what guards were on duty like Irma. I was glad that she did.

"Three twenty-five Irma."

"Thanks," she said shortly. "You better watch out for Bunny Rabbit. He's got it in for you."

"Yeah." I sighed and sat up. I leaned my back against the wall and smashed the blanket into a ball I could use as an armrest while I waited for officer Bunny Rabbit to deliver breakfast.

We called him Bunny Rabbit because his name was Babbit. It just sounded like rabbit and somehow nicknaming the guards made tolerating them easier. It was like an inside joke among the inmates. Every guard had a nickname however, Bunny Rabbit may have been a bit too kind for Babbit.

The male guards weren't allowed to directly interact with the female inmates without a female guard present. Too risky for them, too risky for us but Bunny Rabbit didn't follow the rules. There were several stories of him initiating relations with female inmates which partially contributed to his nickname. He had been fortunate so far to not have been caught or turned in. His superpower was knowing every nook and cranny in the facility with no video surveillance.

The exterior entry door to the house opened and then closed with a loud clank as the locking mechanism switched back into place. As the interior door of the house opened, the day room lights came on flooding my cell with eye stinging fluorescent light. The squealing sound of the food cart wheels along with the aroma of freshly cooked powdered eggs entered the day room.

There were tables and benches in the day room, but we never ate meals there. All meals were consumed in our cells, passed to us through the food flaps. It insured that no one could steal food from another inmate and that we all received our state mandated proper nutrition. People still stole food. Once the guards left, the house became an auction hall. Leaders of different groups offered up protection in return for food items. Turning over your eggs or carton of milk or juice was the daily payment for protection services. Which only meant you may make it through the day without getting the shit beat out of you once the cell doors opened and day room time began. Auctioned food was not in the least appealing to me. I knew where I had to hide and stash food so that I could get it into the day room. I certainly didn't want anything from anyone else.

I suppose I could count myself fortunate that auctioned food was above my pay grade. My role was to provide the food, not receive it. I hadn't eaten breakfast in a week. All my food went to the beast of a woman called Karen in the cell above me. I was an easy target. Young, small, and not threatening. At least that's what she thought. My charges were non-violent. I committed theft to land myself here so she believed she could abuse me as much as she wanted without any retaliation from me. She was right in a way. I wasn't big enough or strong enough to do anything to her myself, but I was smarter than her. What she didn't know was that I hadn't eaten dinner in a week either. I'd been trading my breakfast to Karen for protection from Karen, but I'd been trading my dinner to Irma and her crew. They were going to get rid of Karen for me. I wasn't sure how, and I wasn't sure I wanted to know how. I wasn't sure I cared.

Bunny Rabbit's face appeared in my cell window. He licked his lips then bit his lower and puckered a kiss in my direction. Uck, nausea set in my stomach. Somehow, I think he believed that his attempt at seducing me would work. He really thought that would be appealing to me.