Page 55 of Diamond in the Rough

“Right,” Ernie said, snapping his fingers. “Eight down, waterproof boots, eleven letters…”

“Destructive…”

“Broken pottery, six.”

“Brutal.”

“I don’t think you understand how crosswords work.”

Maddox pressed his fist down onto the paper. “I don’t want to be doing this.”

“Well, you need to do something. You can’t go trashing the cell, and I could tell you were building up to it.”

“What would it matter if I did?”

“That’s my cell, my home of the last twenty years. Not to mention they’ll put you in solitary.” Ernie pointed to Maddox’s hand. “And I hate to think what you’ll do to yourself in there.”

“I can’t just sit here—”

“That is exactly what you’re gonna do.”

Maddox looked at Ernie’s oxygen tank with fresh eyes. No longer a stomach-churning reminder of inevitable death but a means of escape. It would act as a good weapon, more effective than a knife. He could bludgeon his way through the guards or use it as a bomb, blow the first gate open—”

Ernie’s hand came down on the tank. “Don’t even think it. Now, fifteen across, disappear, six.”

“Vanish,” Maddox muttered.

Ernie opened his mouth to argue, then bobbed his head. “Right…”

Maddox closed his eyes and waited for the next clue. He needed to keep a clear head or he was no help to himself, or Jake.

****

“Still nothing?” Ernie asked.

Maddox shook his head. “No, and no one’s answering my calls.”

“Eat.”

“I’m not hungry.”

“You missed breakfast and lunch. You need dinner, Maddox. They’ll stop serving up soon.”

“I don’t want anything.” He turned his attention to the TV mounted in the corner. Every day at six, the guards put the news on, but it was the first time Maddox paid attention.

The news bulletin ran across the screen. The shooting on Keys Street and the one injured in a stable but serious condition.

“That…it?” Ernie asked.

Maddox shot him a glance, and Ernie nodded.

“Serious, huh?”

“He should be dead.” Maddox swiped his hand down his face. “Don’t let me down, Carl…”

The broadcast was interrupted, and the host clutched her earpiece. “We’ve been notified about a fire outside Camden’s shopping mall. A huge blaze.”

Maddox’s gut sunk, and he shook his head. “No.”

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