Jimmy Silent lay naked on the cold, concrete floor of his cell, surrounded by a puddle of sweat. Puppeteering the unsuspecting was strenuous work and he needed time to recover; even more so when murder was involved and the brutality behind Barton’s kill was deserved of some much needed rest. His body was weak and his mind was tired and although Jimmy has played this game many times before, he had never fully mastered the recovery process. Jimmy Silent breathed deep and slow, as he focused his mind, completely tuning out the prison chatter that echoed around his cell. His Zen-like concentration was broken up by the reverberating sound of steel as his cell door abruptly opened.

            “Get up and put your **** clothes on,” a stocky, lazy-eyed guard barked at him. “You have a visitor.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            I placed Will’s picture back into his folder and held it opened in my hands as I wondered how I was connected in all of this. I thought back to Nona Flores and how I was supposed to meet with her a day after she was murdered. I remembered the scheduled meeting with Will and how I couldn’t recall hearing of his death. Did it even happen? Was he still alive?

            Knock…Knock…Knock…the impatience of Esperanza interrupted my thought.

            “Coming,” I shouted towards the door as I tossed Will’s file back into the drawer.

            As I walked into the lobby, I glanced at the clock, which read 8:58. Esperanza was right on time. I liked that. The blinds that lined the door were still drawn and I knew I should have taken a quick peek before opening the door, but my mind has been scattered for weeks. I unlocked the door and swung it open. Two menacing figures stood in the doorway. Black ski masks hid their faces so that all I could see was their unforgiving eyes and their bodies were covered with solid black sweats. One of the men was wielding a wooden baseball bat and the other gripped a small duffel bag firmly in his clenched hand.

            My heart pounded like a bass drum implanted in my chest. Instinct told me to run, but the intruders blocked the obvious path of escape, so I turned back towards the innards of my office. I knew they wouldn’t have given me time to get to a phone so my initial goal was the mace I kept in my purse. A girl could never be too cautious living in Sin City, especially one with as many experiences with death as me. I lowered my head and took off.

The men entered the office and tracked me through the lobby, but not before the man with the bat shut and locked the front door. I shuttered at the sound of my unexpected entrapment. I tried to get them to chase me around Methra’s desk and any other obstacles I could find with hopes of opening a clear path to the front door, but they weren’t going for it. I knocked over a plant and two chairs in their lane of pursuit as I attempted to slow them down but they were persistent. I reached the door to my office and as I crossed the threshold I felt a tug on my shirt and a painful claw on my shoulder. He caught me. His hand covered my mouth and as I tried to scream, the taste of latex from his glove mixed with my saliva and I damn near vomited when I swallowed it. I probably should’ve. The entire room seemed to be spinning and I quickly thought about what’s most important: Paige. I couldn’t allow myself to get killed because without me she wouldn’t stand a chance. The man tried spinning me around but I slithered away from his clutches like a slippery fish. My shirt tore at the seam but I didn’t care as survival and Paige were my only worries. My purse sat on my desk and I was mere footsteps away from my equalizer. I lunged towards it, toppling over my desk as I grasped the leather hand bag with both hands. He approached as I fumbled through my oversized purse, flinging my makeup, an address book and a pack of gum onto the carpet. I could hear the other man as he ransacked Methra’s office, using the wooden bat to destroy her computer, as he rummaged through filing cabinets and stacks of paperwork. I wondered what the point was to smash the computer instead of stealing it. That’s when I realized that this wasn’t a robbery. These men were here for a purpose.

            As I felt the canister of mace on my fingertips, my assailant threw a plastic bag over my head and pulled it tight around the neck. I could feel burning in my lungs. The pressure placed on my throat made gasping for air a tedious chore. As he tried to suck the life out of me, I could feel my plan for survival drift farther away from my outstretched arms. My vision blurred and my head spun. Now I really felt like vomiting. A hearty amount of bile released from my mouth and formed a puddle inside the plastic bag.  Adrenaline filled my veins as I put up one last fight. I punched and clawed at the masked man and although I connected a few times, it wasn’t enough for him to release me. I had no other choice but to give in to unconsciousness.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            As she retraced her steps with great calculation, Methra led Paige out of the cave. They stood alone in the barren desert, their bodies tired and dirty. Methra’s car was long gone, along with her purse and cell phone. Her mysterious attacker must’ve taken off with it. She remained calm and confident as she knew that her silent call to backup was heard and on the way to rescue them from the uncertainties of the desert.

            “I want to see my mom,” Paige choked up. She was tired and homesick and desperately needed the comforting touch that only a mother could provide.

            “You will, sweetie,” Methra tried to calm her. “She’ll be holding you in her arms before you know it.”

            As Methra wiped the tears from Paige’s dirty face, a car approached them. It sped along the narrow dirt road that winded through the desert until it came to a screeching halt a few feet away from them. Paige hid behind Methra, using her as a shield as she expected the worst.

            “It’s okay Paige.”

             The driver’s door opened. A man’s leg emerged from the car, as his freshly polished boots touched down on the dirt floor. Methra smiled when she saw his face. She was relieved that her savior was there to rescue them. He removed his sunglasses as he slowly walked towards them. Paige peeked around the safety of Methra to get a glimpse of the man. Their eyes met.

            “Dad?” Paige stepped out from behind Methra. “Is it really you?”

            Charlie squatted down and opened his arms wide as he welcomed her. “Yes Paige, it’s me.” She rushed into his arms, as he squeezed her tight with no intentions of ever letting go. “I’ve missed you so much princess.”

            “I missed you too daddy.”

            Charlie looked up at Methra. “Thank you for saving her.”

            “I couldn’t have done it without you,” she explained. “Charlie, they have Adara.”

            “Does she know what’s going on?”

            Methra shook her head.

            Charlie backed away from Paige and looked into her big, green eyes. “Don’t worry princess, I won’t let anything happen to mom.”

            Charlie stood up and held Paige’s hand as he led her and Methra towards his car.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            Two prison guards led a shackled Jimmy Silent through a long corridor, as other inmates shouted obscenities at the trio, until they arrived at the visitor’s wing. The room was long and narrow with a sheet of bulletproof glass separating it in two. Twenty cubicles lined the glass, as roughly a half dozen other inmates spoke to their loved ones, lawyers and homeboys through a telephone which was sure to be monitored. Three unarmed guards patrolled the area. Weapons were only allowed in two locations throughout the prison and those places were the outer watch towers and the “Cage” in the central holding facility, which looked over nearly five hundred prisoners and controlled each and every cell. After entering the room, Jimmy Silent was turned over to one of those guards who led him to the cubicle where his visitor was waiting.

            Jimmy Silent sat down and peered through the glass, staring deep into the eyes of the woman who sat on the other side. Esperanza stared back intently. She was not intimidated of Jimmy Silent. She reached for the phone and placed it to her ear, as Jimmy Silent followed suit.

            “Everything’s going as planned,” Esperanza explained. “Adara is on her way to see Dr. Lipscomb, who sends his regards by the way. He also sends a message. What flies free in a cage that would otherwise be grounded? I have no clue what it means but he said that you would. Do you?”

            Jimmy Silent hung up the phone and rose to his feet, as Esperanza stared at him with the phone still pressed against her ear. He desperately wanted to be there in person when Dr. Lipscomb would break Adara down, but it wasn’t the easiest of plans considering his living situation. A guard escorted him out of the room and passed him off to the two guards that brought him there. They led him back down the corridor and into the central holding facility. As they passed the Cage, Jimmy glanced at the guard on duty. His name tag read: S. Byrd. Jimmy Silent knew what Dr. Lipscomb’s message meant.

            After the guard locked him back into his cell, Jimmy Silent focused his mind more precise than ever. He has tapped the inmate well dry and the few officers he had attempted to control fell by the wayside, but Officer Byrd was new. He transferred three weeks prior from San Quentin where he worked for nearly twenty years and Jimmy Silent knew he was the key. He closed his eyes and maneuvered himself through the realm that few have touched, until he became one with the unwary host. The successful connection was felt throughout his body and the smell of freedom resonated deep inside. Jimmy Silent opened his eyes.

            Officer Byrd closed his eyes and squinted at the sudden impact of a headache. He shook his head to release the cobwebs and opened his eyes. He felt revived as he sucked in the aroma of the stingy prison and savored it. He diligently scanned each cell and took notice to each guard’s position. The time was right. Officer Byrd unlocked Jimmy Silent’s cell door. Jimmy emerged from his cage as two nearby guards quickly approached him. Two shotgun blasts echoed throughout the prison. Panic and chaos erupted in every other cell while Jimmy Silent remained calm as he watched the two officers as they fell into a puddle of their own blood.

            “Come on,” Officer Byrd ordered Jimmy as he welcomed him with a wave.

            Jimmy Silent knew the strict concentration needed in controlling his Agents, so to attempt this escape side by side with himself would be quite a risk, but it was a risk he felt was worth taking. He followed Officer Byrd out of the central holding facility and down a long, empty corridor that led to the yard. Jimmy grew weak and knew that he didn’t have much time before he would be completely incapacitated. As they reached the doors of the yard, Jimmy Silent decided that in order to pull this off, he would need to lay low while he controlled Officer Byrd to clear up the yard.

The two guards in the watch towers had heard the gunshots but never heard an alarm since Officer Byrd disabled it before he left the Cage. They remained alert. Officer Byrd inched along the concrete exterior of the prison until he reached a good vantage point of both towers. Jimmy Silent sat patiently on the other side of the doors, waiting for his Agent to get into position. Byrd pointed his weapon and aimed at the attentive guard who was situated closest to where he was posted up. The guard spotted him but it was a second too late. BANG! The guard fell to the ground as his blood splattered against the steel cage that was meant to protect him. Officer Byrd quickly aimed at the second guard who had his weapon already drawn. BANG! A bullet ricocheted an inch away from Byrd’s ear, blowing a hole in the concrete wall. Before the guard could release a second shot, BANG! Officer Byrd placed a hollow point between the guard’s eyes.

Before Jimmy Silent grew too weak to walk, he summoned his new and very helpful Agent. Officer Byrd turned the shotgun so that his dry lips could wrap around the barrel. Sweat dripped from his brow in fear and anticipation, as Officer Byrd’s subconscious became aware. However, Jimmy was too strong. He pulled the trigger, blowing a hole the size of a softball in the top of his own head. Jimmy was released. He stood slowly to his feet and took in the strength needed to complete his mission. He walked out into the yard and found Officer Byrd’s lifeless body. Jimmy squatted down and picked up the shotgun, a security card and Byrd’s car keys. He made his way to the main guard gate, where a lone, unarmed officer attempted to get between him and the outside. One more bullet was needed and Jimmy did not hesitate, as he sent the lead projectile into the guard’s skull.

            Jimmy Silent swiped Officer Byrd’s card, which allowed him access to the main guard house. Inside there, he opened the gate: Freedom.