Tate kicked him square in the jaw, creating an awful cracking sound; blood flew from Matt’s mouth with the impact.
“Hey, do something!” Ed shouted to the guards as they sat by patiently watching the fight as if it was for entertainment.
Nate hobbled up to his foot and hopped over to the wall to get out of the way. Without his prosthetic leg, he knew he was in no condition to get involved in a physical altercation like this.
Stumbling backwards, almost falling to the ground, Matt dodged Tate’s next roundhouse punch and followed through with a swing of his own, hitting Tate directly behind the ear as his body carried him forward from his missed punch.
Matt’s punch sent Tate forward onto the ground, sliding face first in the gravel. In a total fit of rage, Matt raised his right leg as if to stomp on Tate’s head.
“Matt, no!” Tommy yelled, knowing Matt was about to cross a line from which he could not return. At the same time, a crack rang out, echoing off of the camp’s steel walls. Matt’s body jerked violently as a mist of blood erupted from his back, knocking him to the ground.
Ed and Nate turned to see one of the guards in the watchtower in the far corner of the quad holding a rifle, still aimed at Matt.
As Matt writhed in pain on the ground, a second shot rang out, impacting him directly in the center of his chest. All movement stopped, as Matt now lay lifeless. In total shock of what happened, the men felt frozen in time. They were quickly snapped back into reality, though, as the guards on the second floor of the center building ran down the retractable stairs, clubs in hand, screaming, “On the ground! On the ground!”
The detainees all dropped to the ground in compliance with the orders from the guards, knowing there was no course of action they could take that would have a good outcome other than to comply.
Tommy lay facedown on the ground, looking at Tate, repeatedly saying, “You son of a bitch; this ain’t over… this ain’t over.”
A guard kicked Tommy in the side, yelling, “Shut up!”
Everyone lay silently as several of the guards dragged Matt’s lifeless body toward the main steel door. They showed him no respect, treating him as if they were simply taking out the trash.
The loudspeaker from the second floor rang out a command. “Quad two detainees, enter the barracks immediately. I repeat, quad two detainees, enter the barracks immediately.”
As Tommy slowly got to his feet and began to walk toward the center building in compliance with the order, he mouthed the words to Tate, “This ain’t over. You’re a dead man.” The look on his face sent chills up Tate’s spine.
~~~~
For the rest of the evening, the detainees of quad two remained in the barracks. The doors remained closed and locked, and as chow time came and went, they knew they would be on lockdown at least until the next morning. Tate kept mostly to himself; his friends had abandoned him, understanding the risks that his behavior had brought to them.
“Why the hell is that bastard still in here with us?” Nate asked, trying to get his frustrations off his chest. Tommy sat next to him, his hands on his face and his elbows on his knees, still in shock and in dismay about what had happened to Matt, who had become his best friend since their mutual detention.
Aaron Darcy walked up and replied, “I’m not sure why he garners favor with the blue bellies. It’s been that way as long as I can remember though. There have been a lot of people come and go since then. Perhaps some of them were rotated out because he gave some information to the blue bellies about them. Who knows? Just trust me, guys… stay out of trouble for just a little longer. Trust me,” he said again, ensuring they understood the importance of what he was saying.
As Aaron walked off to converse with another group, Ed said, “I want to believe him that something big is on its way for us, but these days, it’s hard to let
“Hey, do something!” Ed shouted to the guards as they sat by patiently watching the fight as if it was for entertainment.
Nate hobbled up to his foot and hopped over to the wall to get out of the way. Without his prosthetic leg, he knew he was in no condition to get involved in a physical altercation like this.
Stumbling backwards, almost falling to the ground, Matt dodged Tate’s next roundhouse punch and followed through with a swing of his own, hitting Tate directly behind the ear as his body carried him forward from his missed punch.
Matt’s punch sent Tate forward onto the ground, sliding face first in the gravel. In a total fit of rage, Matt raised his right leg as if to stomp on Tate’s head.
“Matt, no!” Tommy yelled, knowing Matt was about to cross a line from which he could not return. At the same time, a crack rang out, echoing off of the camp’s steel walls. Matt’s body jerked violently as a mist of blood erupted from his back, knocking him to the ground.
Ed and Nate turned to see one of the guards in the watchtower in the far corner of the quad holding a rifle, still aimed at Matt.
As Matt writhed in pain on the ground, a second shot rang out, impacting him directly in the center of his chest. All movement stopped, as Matt now lay lifeless. In total shock of what happened, the men felt frozen in time. They were quickly snapped back into reality, though, as the guards on the second floor of the center building ran down the retractable stairs, clubs in hand, screaming, “On the ground! On the ground!”
The detainees all dropped to the ground in compliance with the orders from the guards, knowing there was no course of action they could take that would have a good outcome other than to comply.
Tommy lay facedown on the ground, looking at Tate, repeatedly saying, “You son of a bitch; this ain’t over… this ain’t over.”
A guard kicked Tommy in the side, yelling, “Shut up!”
Everyone lay silently as several of the guards dragged Matt’s lifeless body toward the main steel door. They showed him no respect, treating him as if they were simply taking out the trash.
The loudspeaker from the second floor rang out a command. “Quad two detainees, enter the barracks immediately. I repeat, quad two detainees, enter the barracks immediately.”
As Tommy slowly got to his feet and began to walk toward the center building in compliance with the order, he mouthed the words to Tate, “This ain’t over. You’re a dead man.” The look on his face sent chills up Tate’s spine.
~~~~
For the rest of the evening, the detainees of quad two remained in the barracks. The doors remained closed and locked, and as chow time came and went, they knew they would be on lockdown at least until the next morning. Tate kept mostly to himself; his friends had abandoned him, understanding the risks that his behavior had brought to them.
“Why the hell is that bastard still in here with us?” Nate asked, trying to get his frustrations off his chest. Tommy sat next to him, his hands on his face and his elbows on his knees, still in shock and in dismay about what had happened to Matt, who had become his best friend since their mutual detention.
Aaron Darcy walked up and replied, “I’m not sure why he garners favor with the blue bellies. It’s been that way as long as I can remember though. There have been a lot of people come and go since then. Perhaps some of them were rotated out because he gave some information to the blue bellies about them. Who knows? Just trust me, guys… stay out of trouble for just a little longer. Trust me,” he said again, ensuring they understood the importance of what he was saying.
As Aaron walked off to converse with another group, Ed said, “I want to believe him that something big is on its way for us, but these days, it’s hard to let
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