The door opened and a tall black man was hauled in, his face bloody and swollen, and his hands and legs chained together, forcing him into a prisoner shuffle. The guards slammed him up against a section of wall that was paneled in a rubbery material covered in pockmarks and then moved away.

Tyree explained, “This man attacked a guard barely five minutes ago. He felt it violated his civil rights to be beaten for extending his middle finger to one of my men because he’d made a silly little joke about this fellow’s mama.”

Tyree swung the pistol around and fired a round into the black man’s head. He slumped to the floor, an exit crater blown into the back of his head. A part of his brain along with the slug was embedded into the rubber wall behind, leaving another large pockmark.

“And he was shot while trying to escape after taking a hostage, all of which we have duly documented for regulatory review.”

Tyree handed the gun back and resumed his pacing. “Those are basically the rules here. We keep them short and simple so that you will have no trouble remembering and thus following them. Please also keep in mind that here you have no privacy, no rights, no dignity and no reasonable expectation of anything except what we say you can have. At the moment you walked into this facility you ceased to be human beings. Indeed, because of the crimes that you have committed against humanity you have forfeited all rights to be considered human beings. No guard at this prison will have any compunction about ending your life at any moment and for any reason. You now will be officially processed into this prison’s inmate population. If you give us no trouble, I can reasonably assure that you will live out your lives here in relative peace and security, though I cannot say how long that life will be. Supermax facilities are by their very nature dangerous places. We of course will make all reasonable attempts to ensure your safety, but there are no guarantees.” He paused and faced them. “Welcome to Dead Rock, gentlemen. I can guarantee that you will not enjoy your stay with us.”

Chapter 62

CHAPTER 62

ANNABELLE WALKED INTO RITA’S, pausing at the door to survey the landscape. Half the tables were filled, as were all the stools at the counter.

“Can I help you?” A man came around the bar and was looking at her.

“I was looking for Abby Riker?”

“She’s not here. She’s at home.”

“Midsummer’s Farm?”

“Who are you?”

“Sheriff Tyree told me to come and see her.”

“Oh, well I guess that’s okay then. You might want to call out to the house and talk to her.”

“Do you have her number?”