Lock Down (Supernatural Prison Trilogy Book 1)

by Aella Black

  “Seems simple enough,” Cathy said. “I’ll tell the others and get the information we need.”

  I nodded, and Xander and I listened as she rattled off the plan in simple terms. Eyes locked, we heard her list off the things we needed info on, mostly dealing with keys and the garage security. Hopefully, someone could remember details from when they were brought here. I certainly didn’t.

  After she was done, Cathy heaved a happy sigh. “Wow. We’re actually doing this.”

  I cracked a smile. “We’re actually doing this.”

  She hopped to her feet. “I’m going back inside to help Birdie with the puzzle.”

  “Thanks for your help,” I said. She grinned and sprinted back inside.

  Xander lay back and stretched out on the grass. It was the perfect time of day to soak up a few rays. “I like your ideas for the chess tournament,” he said, closing his eyes. I liked having the opportunity to look at him.

  It was unfair how gorgeous Xander was, even in prison. He filled out a jumpsuit better than anyone here, and his tanned skin miraculously looked good against the gray. His hair was longer than I’d ever seen it, and he had the cutest little quirk to his full lips.

  He opened his eyes and caught me ogling him. I looked away quickly. I was sure I was blushing when I heard the last thing I expected him to say. “Lay down with me?” I turned back toward him but hesitated. “I just want to pretend we’re somewhere else for a minute.”

  Slowly, I stretched myself out next to him. Xander closed his eyes again, tilting his face up to the sky. I wasn’t a fan of closing my eyes when there were enemies around, but I took a deep breath and forced myself to relax.

  Of course, my thoughts went to the guy lying right next to me. I wanted to ask him more about his parents, because the fact that they knew about Leavenworth and Lansing meant something. I just didn’t know what. But I didn’t want to burst this peaceful bubble we were in by asking about the two people who’d abandoned him to this place.

  A few minutes passed, and he asked, “Do you miss school?”

  I glanced at him. His eyes were still closed, a peaceful expression on his face. “Yeah, I do, actually.” School seemed like ages ago, and it sounded weird, but I’d give almost anything to go back. “This past year, it was my refuge.”

  His eyes opened and he looked at me. “How so?”

  I shifted my gaze back to the sky. “I had to work a lot. And if I wasn’t working, I was doing homework. Or getting groceries, cooking, cleaning, that kind of stuff.” I was glad I couldn’t see the pity I knew was plastered all over his face. “School was the only time I could just be.” Even if my existence there was less than noteworthy.

  Peeking over at him, I was surprised to see he didn’t look like he pitied me at all. In fact, it almost seemed like admiration I detected in his blue eyes. Then, his expression changed abruptly and he asked, “Don’t you think it’s weird they don’t feel the need to educate us here?”

  Peaceful bubble busted.

  I had thought about it, actually. I just didn’t like to think about it. But I wasn’t sure Xander had heard the rumors about what could happen to us when we turned eighteen. He deserved to know.

  After I broke the news to him, he closed his eyes once again and I closed mine too, letting him digest it. Apparently, no one had mentioned it to him, and I knew from experience it was a lot to take in. The callousness of these people continued to astound me. All the more reason we needed Operation Chess Tournament to succeed.

  No matter how I looked at it, my future was uncertain. But I’d rather an uncertain future out in the world than one in captivity.

  It was far more fun to think about what-ifs. For example, if Xander and I hadn’t been sent here—and my parents were both still around—what would my life look like? Would I have been a normal teenager, doing all the things normal teenagers do? Would I have gone to prom? Would I have gone to prom with Xander?

  I blinked my eyes open, staring up at the blue sky, then tilted my head to sneak a peek at the object of my long-term affection.

  His eyes, burning with intensity, were staring straight at me. My breath hitched, and I couldn’t look away if I tried. “We’re going to get out of here, Phoebe,” he whispered fiercely.

  “I know.”

  I wanted to ask him what happened after that, but I knew that wasn’t what mattered right now. What mattered was leaving before one of us turned eighteen, before they came up with new and horrible ways to terrorize us in the name of science. Which reminded me…

  “Thank you,” I whispered, the grass tickling my cheek. “For what you did yesterday.”

  His eyes didn’t leave mine, but I saw the pain that flickered behind them. “You’ll never have to go through that again.” He said it like a promise. I hoped it was one he could keep.

  Xander propped himself up on his elbow, and, suddenly, he was close. Very close.

  I held my breath as his gaze flickered to my lips.

  “Careful, Chief,” a voice said, slicing through the moment. “She’d be easy to crush.”

  Xander straightened, and I sat up so quickly I got lightheaded. Wolf stood in front of us, arms crossed, his pack of faithful followers behind him.

  I sensed Xander tense next to me.

  “I should know,” Wolf continued, prowling toward us. “Although it wasn’t exact like that.” He gestured at the two of us and laughed.

  “Leave us alone,” I snapped. “What are you trying to do, get Xander in trouble?”

  “Well,” Wolf uncrossed his arms, pointed at me, then ran a finger across his throat, “yeah.”

  Xander jumped to his feet. I reached for him to pull him back, but he’d already lunged for Wolf. The troublemaker flew back when Xander punched him in the jaw, knocking over Ghost and Zapper. Dizzy had leapt out of the way just in time.

  Wolf was back on his feet surprisingly fast for someone so large. Blood coated his lips, but he was smiling. “Do that again, Chief.”

  Was he crazy?

  Xander took the bait. He threw another punch, but Wolf blocked it, snarling. Hair sprouted on his face. The sight of it triggered the memory of Wolf strangling me, and I sprang to my feet. “Xander, stop!” I yelled.

  He didn’t. Instead, he football-tackled Wolf and pinned him to the ground. The guards leapt into action, running over and shouting for them to break it up.

  But Xander wasn’t listening. He punched Wolf in the face over and over, his face twisted in fury. I’d never seen him like this before, and I never wanted to again.

  Finally, the guards tased him, and he slumped to the side, freeing Wolf. Handcuffs were slapped onto his wrists. Luther appeared, his face purple. “It’s always you two,” he grumbled.

  “He attacked Wolf!” Zapper pointed at Xander. “We were all just talking and he jumped on him.”

  Ghost and Dizzy nodded their agreement.

  “You’ve got to be kidding me,” I cried. “Wolf was antagonizing him!”

  The guards hauled Xander to his feet. I scowled at Wolf, who was still on the ground, his face bashed and bloody. Wolf laughed and turned to Xander. “I don’t expect to see your face around here any time soon,” he spat, blood and spittle flying in the air.

  He really is crazy.

  My stomach sank to the ground. This had been Wolf’s plan all along—take out Xander. Then, my friends and I would be weak and vulnerable. He couldn’t have Xander on his team, so he wanted him out of the picture.

  Panicking, I followed Xander and the guards. “Where are you taking him?” I demanded.

  “Back off, Phoenix,” Luther barked. “Twice in two days? I’m thinkin’ Chief will be out of commission for a while.”

  My insides froze. A while? We were going to try to escape in five days. We couldn’t do that without Xander.

  “I’m sorry, Phoebe,” Xander said, fixing me with his gaze before being shoved through the door to The Quad. I followed them inside, but then watched helplessly as they hauled Xand
er through the room.

  And then, just like that, he was gone.

  27

  Two days passed with no sign of Xander.

  Suddenly, our plans for escape seemed impossible. Without him, I didn’t know how we could pull it off.

  Worse, no one knew where Xander was. What had they done with him? It was possible he’d been transferred to Lansing where they originally wanted to put him. I hoped that wasn’t true, but the alternative was worse.

  Much worse.

  But then I’d recalled what Luther said before they’d taken Xander away. He’d said he thought Xander would be out of a commission “for a while.” That wasn’t never. I tried holding on to that hope.

  Last night, I’d caught up to Warden Will as he walked down the hall. I demanded to know where Xander was, but the warden just stared at me like a poor creature in a cage and said it was top secret.

  Some help he was.

  Wolf had played us well. He became extra cocky, always passing our table and taunting us every chance he got. He knew I’d been looking for a way out and must have figured out we were working on a way to make that happen.

  As we waited for lights-out on the second night since Xander’s sudden departure, Rocky cleared her throat. “So, we still on for the chess tournament or what?”

  I shook my head. “I don’t know.”

  Rocky sighed, and to my surprise, came to sit on my bed. She leaned her face close to mine and I leaned back. Not only because she occupied my space, but, despite our tight living quarters, we’d never actually been this close to one another. “You’re feeling kicked down. So what? Get back up. Fight.”

  I bit my lip. “You think we can pull it off?”

  “Yeah. No offense, but we don’t need him to plan.” She shrugged. “He’d help, sure. But he’s just one person. And hopefully, by the time we’re ready, he’ll be back.”

  “What if he isn’t?” I asked.

  Maybe Rocky could take over this leadership position I’d somehow found myself in. Xander was born for things like this. Son of two political leaders, he’d been our class president and captain of the football team. I had no business leading anyone to do anything.

  She sniffed, looking away from me. “You can’t give up because of a setback. I’m still in. I’ve got nothing to lose.”

  I tensed. “We’ re not leaving until we know for sure where he is.” That much I was sure about.

  Rocky sighed, as if she expected that response from me. “I get it. No man left behind and all that jazz,” she said. Then she smirked, and pointing at my pillow, asked, “Your boy teach you that?”

  I felt underneath, just to be sure The Art of War was still there. It was. “Something like that.”

  I honestly couldn’t think of what the book said right now, my mind too twisted with worry. Intermingling with that fear were threads of hopelessness. Xander was gone, and to some degree I felt like it was my fault. Wolf had used me to get on Xander’s last nerve until that nerve snapped. I wasn’t sure why he’d risked it all to defend my honor, but it had cost him. Maybe everything.

  Rocky stood. “That’s it, get up. We’re still going to train.”

  Throwing punches was the last thing I wanted to do. “I don’t know,” I said.

  “Well, I do. Come on, do you want to get out of here or not?” She paused, and when met with no response, she continued. “Even if we don’t, you’ll still need to protect yourself from Wolf. Don’t think I haven’t noticed him circling like there’s injured prey walking around this prison.”

  She had a point. Groaning, I got up from my bed and began to go through the motions. Rocky could no longer find fault with my fighting stance, but there were plenty of other things for her to correct. She also taught me some blocks, then pressure points. “When you’re small and your opponent’s big, you’ll really want to target those,” she said.

  “Every time I fight?”

  “Yup. So, pay attention.”

  It was an intense session. By the end, I was panting and sweating. Rocky smirked. “You’re getting better,” she said. “I think you could hold your own.”

  I made a face, sinking onto my bed. “You’re just saying that.”

  “Not true. If I say it, I mean it. And I don’t just hand out compliments like candy.”

  I thanked her, both for the compliment and the training, then went to the restroom to get ready for bed. While we waited for the lights to be switched off, my thoughts vacillated between Xander, Wolf, and our escape plan.

  Where was Xander sleeping tonight? Was he okay? I wanted to scream at Wolf for goading him, but if I ever saw Xander again, I’d yell at him too. How could he have been so reckless?

  I swallowed, trying to keep my throat from constricting. I needed to keep it together. My friends deserved that. What they didn’t deserve was me flaking at the first sign of trouble with our plan. Plus, wouldn’t Xander be disappointed if he showed back up and we weren’t ready to roll?

  Rocky softly snored in her bed, and I hugged my pillow close to me. Before Wolf disturbed us, I’d been fairly certain Xander had thought about kissing me. Of course, I had just told him about his possible impending death at the hands of the SCC. There was a good chance if that’s what he was doing, it was one of those do-it-before-you-die reactions. Too bad I’d never find out.

  Still, I shivered when I recalled the intensity of his gaze as he’d leaned over me. Then I shivered again, wondering if Xander’s time had come even sooner than he’d feared.

  My last thought before sleep carried me away wasn’t about Xander’s whereabouts or how we would plan in his absence. It was that I really wished Wolf hadn’t interrupted us.

  28

  “Are we playing chess or not?” Cathy demanded at breakfast.

  Everyone looked to me. I pulled in a breath. “Yes. Let’s plan for the morning of the tests. Xander should be back before then,” I said, with much more confidence than I felt,” and that way, the distraction might spare the other kids from the tests. It’s the least we can do, since we’re leaving them behind.”

  I’d had difficulty reconciling the fact that we couldn’t take everyone with us when we left. It would be a miracle if we got out ourselves.

  “Dude, we talked about it. You know we’ll send help,” Cal said. “Then we’ll be halfway to Timbuktu before the SCC can find us.”

  “Not if we don’t have keys,” I reminded him.

  “I’ve been keeping a lookout for that,” Tex said. “Luther. He holds the master keys. If we want to take anyone’s, we’ll need his ring.”

  “Perfect,” I said and then turned to Birdie. “And you can summon the birds?”

  She nodded enthusiastically. “The crows will help. They help their own when they cry out, you know. They’re very smart.”

  “Super.” I turned to Woody. “And you’ll slow down the guards with some serious woodwork?” I smiled. It was still so funny to think about, and I couldn’t wait to see it in action.

  He returned the smile. He was happier than I’d ever seen him. The prospect of escape must have really bolstered his mood. “Yeah, I can do that.”

  “Awesome,” I said, and he practically beamed.

  “One question, though,” Rocky said. “What about the other kids on the track? Won’t they notice us ducking out and try to come along too?” Great questions. She paused and then asked some more. “And what about Wolf and his gang? Do you think they’d try to stop us?”

  “Hmm, excellent points,” Tex said.

  Already, a snag in our plan. “I hadn’t really thought about that,” I admitted.

  “We can take on Wolf,” Woody said. “Right, Birdie?”

  She grinned, and they gave each other a high five. Though I liked their positive attitudes, I doubted if they could.

  “And if a bunch of black birds came swooping in on me, I probably wouldn’t think about anything except saving my own skin,” Cal said. I didn’t doubt him for a second. “I don’t think we have to w
orry about a mob of kids following us.”

  “Okay, I guess we won’t worry about that until the time comes,” I said. “Also, I think we should only take one car. If we can find a van that fits all of us, who here can drive?”

  Tex and Rocky’s hands shot up. “Perfect,” I said. “Tex, maybe you should drive. Rocky, once we’re out, you’ll have lots of rocks at your disposal in case we need to defend ourselves on the road.”

  “You think that could happen?” Cathy asked, a worry line creasing her brow.

  “We should be prepared for anything,” I told her.

  “So, who wants to grab the keys from Luther?” Tex asked.

  Silence all the way around. “Don’t everyone volunteer at once,” Woody muttered.

  “I can do it,” I said. “If he sees I’m trying to take his keys,” I said, shrugging, “we all know what happens when I die.”

  The group agreed with the plan, but none of us were happy about it. I’d considered attempting to recruit Oscar to help with this, but I decided against it for the same reason we hadn’t approached inmates outside of our group. It was just too big of a risk. There were enough unknown factors in this plan without worrying about someone turning us in.

  During rec time, I singled out Woody. “Think we should find the wooden board games for you to use?” I asked.

  “Yeah, that sounds great.” He grinned an honest-to-goodness grin. I seriously had never seen him so happy. Maybe all of Cathy’s enthusiasm really was rubbing off.

  We knelt in front of the cabinet that held the games, and I started pulling out anything with wood in it. Chess, checkers, wooden puzzles, mancala, and a Chinese checkers board made from solid wood. “This enough for you to work with?” I asked.

  When I turned, Woody’s face was just inches from mine. I pulled back. He nodded. “That should be enough.”

  “Good,” I said. “Okay, so will you get the wood while everyone is running?”