Chapter 6

The three test papers were returned to Block 3's supervisor. If things went as expected, Caleb would need to work on Marcus' attitude.

Caleb had some free time again. As usual, he finished his lunch before noon, then returned to his office area to read and wait for the inmates to arrive.

The inmates' rest period was from noon to two in the afternoon, the most free time they had during the day. Some inmates took naps in their cells, but most preferred to be out and about. Since lights out was at ten at night, daytime was precious.

Recently, as the weather grew warmer, more inmates had been coming to the library to pass the time.

"Officer Johnson," an inmate said, approaching Caleb's desk with a detective novel. "I finished this one. Do you have any other recommendations?"

Caleb glanced up from a distant corner, took the book, and scanned it as he said, "The works of this author are all good. You can check out their other books."

The inmate went to the detective novel section to find works by the same author, while Caleb's gaze shifted back to Marcus, who was sitting in the distance. Though Marcus came to the library, he hadn't borrowed any books. Instead, he sat by the window, watching the inmates exercising in the yard, seemingly lost in thought.

Caleb still couldn't figure him out.

Caleb hid half his face behind his computer screen, feeling slightly irritated as he observed Marcus' profile.

As Hector had said, Caleb was a gay man with high standards for both looks and physique. Given that he himself wasn't unattractive, his standards for a partner were naturally high.

But ironically, Caleb preferred to observe from the shadows rather than interact directly. Once he figured a person out, he would lose interest completely, and nothing accelerated this process faster than actual contact.

Hector had been a great partner—humorous, tolerant, and compassionate. But as Caleb got to know him completely, it was also when his enthusiasm for the other man waned.

Human beings were inherently contradictory, and it wasn't until today that Caleb realized that figuring a person out could lead to boredom, while being unable to understand someone could provoke irritation.

Seemingly sensing Caleb's gaze, Marcus suddenly turned his head and met his eyes directly. This time, Caleb didn't look away. The library was his domain, and he had every right to observe the inmates within it.

Marcus appeared surprised by Caleb's direct scrutiny. Initially, he had been casually seated with his shoulders relaxed. But upon meeting Caleb's gaze, he leaned back in his chair, crossed his arms over his chest, and adopted a defensive posture.

The two of them were situated in opposite corners of the library, with no one blocking their view of each other.

The library was already quiet, and their silent exchange of glances felt like a test of wills—an unspoken agreement that whoever looked away first would be the loser.

Caleb's mindset was entirely different from before. When Marcus was merely his neighbor, he felt uneasy about spying on him. But now, things were different. Marcus was an inmate, and Caleb was a prison officer. Plus, the library was his territory, so he had no reason to back down.

However, when Marcus' lips suddenly curved up into a smirk, Caleb's heart skipped a beat and his focused gaze wavered instantly. He held on for a few more seconds but ultimately gave in, shifting slightly to hide his face behind the computer screen.

Why was Marcus smiling? Had he noticed something interesting?

Caleb's habit of speculating compelled him to keep thinking. His irregular heartbeat not only failed to calm down, but seemed to race even more erratically.

Just then, the noise of a chair being moved broke Caleb's train of thought. He looked up to see Marcus standing up, following another inmate who was leaving through the library's back door.

The inmate leading the way was one of the thugs in the prison, whose boss was a notorious killer nicknamed Nine.

A bad feeling stirred in Caleb's chest. He waited for a moment, but neither Marcus nor the other inmate passed through the library's front door. Instead, other inmates appeared from somewhere and made their way toward the stairs.

The library was located in the corner of the second floor, and there was only one place beyond it—the recreational room.

Caleb quickly realized what had happened. The other inmate had taken Marcus to the recreational room and chased out the other inmates who had been in there.

With the recreational room being small, who occupied its space was naturally determined by one's status within the prison.

Caleb swiftly pulled up the surveillance footage of the recreational room on his computer. As expected, he saw Nine and another subordinate in the room. Including the inmate who had guided Marcus out of the library, three people surrounded Marcus.

Caleb had anticipated that someone would want to mess with Marcus, but he hadn't expected Nine to be among them.

Nine was a gang member before his imprisonment. The bald man had been captured during a crackdown on organized crime. Although his nickname was Nine, he was probably Southern Prison's second most powerful inmate.

"You're the guy that messed around with the stock market, right?" asked Nine, having to look up slightly when talking to Marcus.

Despite having to tilt his chin up, as he was shorter, Nine didn't seem to be a weakling. Instead, he carried an air of authority.

Caleb only had one wireless earbud in his ear, so the volume was a bit low. He had to turn up the computer's volume to hear what was going on.

"Did you need something?" Marcus asked.

Facing the camera, he raised an eyebrow slightly, his expression unchanged as he spoke.

Caleb watched from behind the screen as he listened to Marcus' question.

Why else would they have led Marcus there? Obviously, it was because they wanted to teach him a lesson.

Some inmates had strange psychology. Even though they had committed crimes themselves, seeing someone worse could provoke a sense of righteous retribution. But then again, Nine was no saint. He had committed heinous acts before his imprisonment. Compared to Marcus, he didn't have any moral high ground.

"You've swindled a lot of people, haven't you? I saw on the news that it's at least a hundred million," Nine said.

Marcus didn't respond immediately. He glanced calmly at the three men and asked slowly, "You called me over just to talk about that?"

Caleb silently mouthed the answer to Marcus's question—"of course not".

Seeing that Nine started the conversation with money, Caleb guessed that Nine probably had other motives beyond just putting Marcus in his place.

"I'll be blunt. Pay me some protection money, and I'll look out for you. You should know that plenty of people in this prison would like to take a shot at you," Nine said.

"Take a shot at me? Why?" Marcus questioned, clearly not understanding the prison's rules.

"Why else?" The inmate who had guided Marcus stepped forward and pushed his shoulder. "You've swindled ordinary people out of their hard-earned money and ruined countless families. Yet, you still have the nerve to ask why?"

Marcus frowned, seeming to finally piece together the logic.

However, he responded nonchalantly, "I didn't harm anyone."

"Hah, still playing innocent at this point, are you?" Nine stepped closer and shoved Marcus. "It's best you wise up, kid. Prison isn't a nice place."

"I said…" Marcus' face darkened as he lost his patience, emphasizing each word, "I didn't harm anyone."

Like Nine, Caleb didn't believe Marcus' claim. However, Caleb speculated that Marcus wasn't trying to deny the facts, but rather really felt that he hadn't hurt anyone. Of course, this was just Caleb's one-sided analysis.

Nine pushed Marcus again, then gestured to his two subordinates with a nod.

Caleb counted backward from three silently in his head. By the time he reached one, the people on the screen attacked Marcus.

One of Nine's subordinates immediately tried to cover Marcus' mouth to prevent him from calling for help, but the latter had no intention of shouting. Instead, he seized the outstretched hand and threw the man over his shoulder.

Normally, correctional officers would immediately intervene if they saw inmates fighting. But the recreational room had only two storage cabinets and no other furniture. As the men fought, they either slammed into the floor or the walls, making little noise.

Caleb was at the far end of the library, away from the recreational room. So, there was no reason he should have known that a fight was happening inside. He continued to monitor the surveillance footage.

As expected, Marcus was quite skilled. When others landed a punch on him, it only slowed him down momentarily. But when he threw a punch, he could make his opponents stagger back several steps.

Honestly, Caleb didn't care which side got beaten up—whether it was Marcus or Nine and his subordinates. In his view, everyone in the prison was here because they had done something wrong, so every one of them should be beaten up.

At that moment, a heart-wrenching scream erupted from his wireless earbud. Having turned the volume up to the maximum, the scream nearly made Caleb jump out of his seat.

On the screen, Nine could be seen lying helplessly on the ground. He was still, indicating that he had lost consciousness. Meanwhile, Marcus continued to pummel his face as he straddled him.

Nine's two subordinates seemed frightened by Marcus' ferocity and instinctively moved back toward the door. They looked as if they were hesitating to call for help.

But it was unnecessary for them to call for aid. The commotion had already caught the attention of the other inmates in the library. They glanced towards the recreational room, then at Caleb, trying to gauge his reaction.

Caleb quickly tossed the earbud into a drawer and notified the patrol team via the intercom. He hurried to the recreational room, knowing that if Marcus continued to beat up Nine, things would get out of hand.

Since the door of the recreational room couldn't be locked, Caleb immediately twisted the handle and barged in.

"Inmate 1017, stop!" he barked.

Nine's two subordinates, who were blocking the door, immediately stepped aside, looking back and forth between Caleb and Marcus in bewilderment.

The patrol team arrived right behind Caleb. Some members went forward to check Nine's condition and call for Hector. Others took out handcuffs and restrained the remaining three inmates.

"Is this guy really a fraudster?" one of Nine's subordinates muttered.

"He's a fucking lunatic, that's what he is," another added.

Nine's two subordinates, grumbling and swearing, were led away by the patrol team.

As Marcus passed by Caleb, he suddenly stopped and abruptly asked, "How did you know it was me?"