Page 27 of The Fall Guy

“Okay, man. See you.”

We hang up. A bitter taste is left in my mouth as reality kicks in. Brad is my closest friend and other than him I don’t have many others. My family seems to have turned their back on me and Rio is the only person I have in here. Knowing he kills people for a living doesn’t exactly put my mind at ease.

Large hands wrap around my neck, pulling me backwards, and I struggle against them. Whoever has me is seriously strong. My airways are blocking up and the guy’s grip is tight. I elbow him in the chest with all my might and manage to get away long enough to see my attacker. Felix’s fist connects with my face before I can get too far.

“What is your problem?” I manage to grind out, but he’s back on me, trying to squeeze the life out of me.

He’s too powerful, and it’s obvious I can’t take on his muscular size without improvising. Using the wall, I try to force him off me by trying to push him off balance. It’s no use; I just can’t shake him. The light feels like it’s fading from my eyes just as I see another shadow appear.

Rio grabs the cord from one of the phone boxes, pulling it out of its socket. He’s behind Felix and me but I start to feel Felix’s grip loosen. I bend over, trying to get some air in my lungs while darks spots cloud my vision. When I turn to see what’s happening, Rio has the wire around the big guy’s neck. Unlike when he did this to me with the pillow, Felix has no chance of escaping. All I can do is watch as the scene unfolds.

Someone sounds the alarm, and the room fills with guards. I’m hiked up onto my tiptoes before I can protest. I’m still recovering from the attack and not ready to be thrown back in a cell.

“Don’t say anything,” Rio shouts at me as we’re all pulled in different directions.

My head still feels light, and I’m aware he probably just saved my life. He truly is the one I can trust in a time of need. I’m put into an isolated cell and left to catch my breath. I lay on the cold, hard floor waiting for my body to return back to normal.

Felix was the person I needed to be wary of. I was so busy looking at the people closest to me I hadn’t considered him as a threat. It’s my cellmate he’s been harassing, not me. I’d never even spoken to the guy. He’s either a complete psycho, jealous of my connection with Rio, or I’m missing some vital information.

Once I’m no longer lightheaded I get to my feet, dusting off my knees. There’s a mirror above a small sink in the corner of the room, and I walk over to it. I look like hell. My skin is clammy, my eyes are bloodshot, and dark handprints are embedded onto my neck. I’m not going to be able to hide what happened. They’re going to be visible for days. The reality is branded on me: if Rio hadn’t been there, I’d be dead.

The governor pulls me into her office to ask what happened, and even though she points out my bruising, I keep tight-lipped. After getting frustrated, she dismisses me, and I’m allowed back into my cell. I’ve never felt so relieved to be back inside these four walls.

Here I’m safe and able to reassess what just happened. After Rio’s warning about talking to the guards it’s obvious they can’t help with my Felix situation. I’m going to have to figure this out on my own unless I want to be unprepared for further attacks. I’ll have to risk keeping the weapon I have closer in future.

It’s another half hour before Rio enters with two guards. They push him to the floor before slamming the door on their departure. The vibrations echo against the walls followed by a faux sense of silence. The prison is on lockdown, and as expected, not everyone is happy about it.

“I was beginning to wonder if we’d be separated,” I say after a beat.

“They know Felix attacked you without you provoking him. They caught the whole thing on the camera above the phone booths.” His facial expression is unreadable as he gets to his feet.

“Do they listen into our phone calls often?” I ask with a frown. My conversation with Brad was private although not incriminating. We tried to be discrete but neither of us were very good at talking in code. It would be better if the guards didn’t know I was trying to find out information on my fellow inmates.

“There’s supposed to be a prison guard in that area at all times. It’s a high-risk area for suicide due to the phone cords, so the prison will get investigated if they don’t keep an eye on it. The duty guard will have sounded the alarm once he pulled his finger out of his ass. They should be thanking me, I probably saved him his job by rescuing you. You’re welcome, by the way.” There’s bitterness in his voice and his tone is snappy.

“Are you angry with me?” My lack of vocal gratitude shouldn’t have made him this worked up and I doubt he’s in that much trouble for breaking the phone when it was to help get Felix off me.

“You’re weak, and people are going to start noticing.” He sighs heavily letting his thoughts linger.

“That’s ridiculous, I’m not weak. He grabbed me from behind, and I was caught off guard. I wasn’t expecting his attack, I’ve hardly ever spoken to the guy.” I let my arms fly wide, unimpressed with his accusation.

“What, so you were expecting him to explain what he was doing like they do in movies? Newsflash, real villains attack first and don’t give you the heads up.” He rolls his eyes.

I climb down from my bunk, anger boiling up under my skin. “What’s your problem?”

“You’re my problem. I can’t be looking after you in here.” He bangs his fist against the wall adjacent to the bed.

“I never said you had to help.” Granted if he hadn’t come to my rescue, I’d probably be dead right now so I’m glad he did, but I don’t like being called weak. I’ve handled myself for years without his help.

“So I should have left you to be Felix’s fish food?” Some of his anger dissipates.

“I’m thankful you saved me. I’ll be watching Felix from now on, so he won’t be able to jump me again.” My words are the truth, and I hope he accepts them as genuine.

“Why would someone put a hit out on you?” He screws his face up like it pains him to ask me this.

I don’t have any enemies in here. I’ve kept my head down, and other than being associated with the Cyclones, I haven’t really spoken to anyone other than the priest. “They wouldn’t.”

He scratches his head thinking for a second. “Are you certain about that?”

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