Blood Lines

individual sound was lost. The smell of food overpowered the smell of prison. Vicki suddenly realized that she hadn't eaten since about nine o'clock the evening before. Her mouth flooded with saliva and her stomach growled audibly.
    'Great timing, Dickson," called a new voice. "We're just counting the spoons. You'll have to keep her out here until we finish and lock 'em in for cleanup."
    'Oh, joy, oh, bliss," Dickson muttered. Vicki tensed as the guard pushed her back until her shoulder blades pressed against the concrete wall. "Stay there. Don't move. You've missed lunch, but considering the food in here, that might be a good thing."
    Vicki could feel people staring. The bars were a hazy grid at the edge of her vision and beyond that she could make out only a shifting sea of blue.
    The hair on the back of her neck rose. You're only in there until you talk to the shrink . You don't need to see anything .
    To her right, she could hear the clatter of spoons against a plastic tray and then the new guard's voice rising above the noise. "So, what've you got?"

    'Skinbeef. Brain-fried, too."
    'Violent?"
    'Barely mobile."
    'Can she piss in the pot?"
    'Probably."
    'Well, thank God for small mercies. I've already got four that have to be hosed down. Where the fuck am I supposed to put her though, that's the question. I'm three down in fifteen out of eighteen cells now."
    'Put her in with Lambert and Wills."
    During the long pause that followed, Vicki realized the two guards were talking about her. As though she wasn't there.
    As though she didn't matter. Because she didn't.
    'Skinbeef, eh?" The second pause had a more ominous sound. "How old was the kid?"
    'Don't know."
    'Well, I think Lambert and Wills will make her feel real welcome." She raised her voice. "All right, you lot, get inside, you know the drill. Oh, for Christ's sake, Naylor, take Chin with you. You know she gets lost…"
    Gradually the sea of blue receded, turned into separate shapes, then disappeared. Vicki heard the sound of steel doors closing.
    'Shu… shu… shu…?"
    'What the hell are you muttering about?" Dickson's face swam into focus as she grabbed Vicki's arm above the elbow and tugged her toward the set of double doors that led into the cell block.
    'Shink…"
    'Oh, the shrink . Hey, Cowan, the shrink been in yet today?"
    'Yeah. Came and left before lunch."
    'You heard her. Looks like you're in here until Wednesday at least."
    Wednesday. Monday's half over. Then Tuesday. Then Wednesday. But the shrink came in the morning. So really only two days. Half of Monday, Tuesday, and half of Wednesday. I can do two days. I can make it. Even without my glasses.
    They stopped in front of one of the cells and Vicki was willing to take any odds that the two women inside were watching her suspiciously from their bunks. The cells were built for two, a third meant the beginning of crowding that often went as high as five. She intended to move quietly into the cell, but her legs froze at the threshold and the panic started to rise again.
    'Come on, Hanover, move it!"
    A shove in the small of her back catapulted her forward and after three wild steps she crashed to her knees.
    It's okay. It's only two days. Once the drug is gone, I'll be fine. These people are crazy. I'm not . Slowly, carefully, she got to her feet. Behind her, she heard the cell door locked and Dickson moving away. Even if the mummy got to Henry, or Celluci -and dealing with that possibility would have to wait- it can't have gotten to the psychiatrist. Two days. I'll be out of here in two days .
    The bunk to her right squealed a protest as the woman reclining on it swung to her feet. Hands held out from her sides, Vicki turned to face her cell mate. Remember, she's crazy. Probably confused. Lost. You're not. Two days .
    Cropped gray hair and a tiny, whippet-thin frame. Large dark eyes in a face that seemed all points. Something familiar… but Vicki couldn't see well enough to determine what.
    'Well, well, well. Will wonders never cease." The voice sound low and clear and frighteningly sane. "Isn't it amazing the people you meet in these places, Natalie?"
    The grunt from the other bunk could've meant anything.
    Vicki felt a dry palm and fingers wrap around her right hand. Her knuckles began to rub painfully. She tried to return the pressure without much effect.
    'It's so nice to see you again, Detective Nelson…"
    Lambert. Angel Lambert. What the hell is she doing in Special Needs?
    '… you can't