A moment later, Dr. Giles appeared next to me and examined my work.

“Nice work, Ms. Evans.” He nodded his approval. “How’s it feel, big guy?” he asked X.

Apparently, he’d built a rapport with many of the inmates. X glanced at him and gave a brief head dip.

Still, no words. It made me wonder if he was even capable of speaking.

“Good. Then I think you can go back to your cell.”

Dr. Giles was gone at that and once again, I was standing there with the beast. He stood slowly, his eyes burning into me, and he waited for the officers to assist him back.

He moved away from me, limping a little as the guards flanked him. The space felt small with him in it, but as soon as he stepped away, it grew and I was suddenly able to get large amounts of oxygen. My head spun from the deep breaths I pulled in.

They stood by the exit and prepared to put cuffs back on him. I looked away and shook myself. There was still work to be done and patients to be attended to.

I turned away from the bed where I’d patched up X and started toward Dr. Giles to help with another inmate, but just as I did, all hell broke loose. The room lit up with red, flashing lights, and an alarm sounded.

The entire room paused, everyone unsure of what to do next. We’d had lockdowns, but never with inmates in the infirmary at the time. My eyes flittered across the room, counting the amount of inmates in the room versus the amount of COs. Panic shot through my limbs. There I was in a room with dangerous criminals… and we were outnumbered. There were more inmates than staff.

The sharp alarm pierced my conscious and my eyes scanned the room again, watching as the remaining staff fell to the floor.

Men pray and women faint.

Dr. Giles’ words moved through my mind.

In other words, when the shit hit the fan the way it was now, get down. Get to the floor and cover your head. If and when more officers came running in, they would take down anyone standing or wearing khakis. That was the biggest reason the medical staff wasn’t allowed to wear anything khaki-colored. They would even go as far as sending you home at the gate if you did.

Know your surroundings. Exits. Quick escape routes. You never know when you’ll need that information. This also includes fire extinguishers, fire alarms, etc.

My legs collapsed beneath me, and my face stung against the cold Formica flooring. As I lay on the floor, I lifted my head and took in the room and all the exits. If I needed to, I could run, but the stupid doors were all locked… hence the word lockdown.

The fear I felt before while looking into the eyes of a murderer was nothing compared the terror that swam in my veins now. I didn’t know what was going on outside the infirmary, but I was worried that soon we’d have a problem on our hands as well.

Suddenly, we did.

Two inmates jumped up and slung a tray of medical supplies to the ground. The tools clinked against the tile in slow motion, and my eyes took in the many things that could be used as weapons.

Scalpels. Needles. You named it. Hell, even a harmless stethoscope could be wrapped around someone’s neck and used to choke them to death. Everywhere I looked, the medical instruments were available on the floor, begging the inmates to pick them up and use them.

Of course, they went straight for the scalpels. They snatched them up and began waving them around the room, ready to cut someone. I closed my eyes and swallowed hard. This was it. This was the end of me—of Lyla Evans.

What in the world made me think I could do a job like this?

I was too soft. Too afraid of my own damn shadow. And now, I was seconds away from being slaughtered in a prison.

The officers nearby pulled batons and pepper spray, hoping to deter an attack, but as I watched the scene unfold, I somehow knew those things would be useless against the inmates.

I glanced over to where Dr. Giles had been. It was then I realized he had moved from the side of the room and locked himself in his office. His eyes locked with mine, and he motioned for me to join him. I could see his mouth moving through the thick glass as he told me to, Come On. Run.

My brain screamed that word on repeat.

Run. Run. Run, Lyla.

With arms and legs that felt like Jell-O, I stood in the midst of all the chaos, but my feet were planted to the floor. I was able to stand, but the fear was too thick and I couldn’t move. Instead, I stood there like an idiot, hoping no one noticed me.

The two officers that were guarding X came to help take down the maniacs with scalpels. I watched as the guys were brought down, and I felt like I could breathe again.

Once I gained my composure and was able to move my legs, I started toward Dr. Giles’ office, but I stopped when something out of the corner of my eye caught my attention. Turning, my eyes locked with X’s. He stood there, shackled helplessly in the doorway, watching the scene before him. The inmates could’ve easily attacked him, and he wouldn’t have been able to protect himself.