Chapter 3: Cell Block D Has a New Ruler
The iron gates of Cell Block D slid open with a loud, hydraulic shriek at exactly 8:00 AM the following morning. The block was different from the messy, chaotic cafeteria of Block C. Here, the cells were cleaner, the walls were painted, and the inmates moved with a quiet, disciplined intensity. These were the career criminals—hitmen, drug lords, and syndicate enforcers who didn't fight over food trays because they already owned the guards.
Leo walked down the center of the tier, his hands free now, his orange uniform moving steadily against the concrete. Dozens of inmates stood by their cell bars, watching him with sharp, calculating eyes. Word about the cafeteria fight had spread like wildfire through the prison network. They knew a monster had just walked into their territory.
At the end of the tier, sitting on a leather chair that had clearly been illegally smuggled into the common room, was a man named Silas. Silas was an older convict with silver hair, a scarred face, and a pristine white handkerchief tucked into his orange pocket. He was Victor Vance's primary lieutenant inside the prison walls.
"Stop right there, fresh meat," Silas said, his voice smooth and dripping with artificial politeness. He didn't stand up; he just leaned his elbows on his knees, looking at Leo like a judge. "We heard about what you did to Big Jax yesterday. Impressive. But Jax is a gorilla. He has muscle, but no brains. In Block D, we use a different currency. We use loyalty. And we use fear."
Leo stopped five feet away, his face perfectly still. "I'm not interested in your currency, Silas. Where is my brother?"
Silas chuckled softly, a dry, rasping sound. Several large inmates stepped out from the shadows of the cells, forming a tight semicircle behind Leo, blocking his escape route. "Your brother is busy, Leo. He’s hosting a private phone conference with some investors in London. He told me that if you showed up in my block, I should give you a proper family welcome."
"Is that so?" Leo asked, his eyes shifting across the five men surrounding him. He could instantly see their balance, their foot placement—these were professional hitmen, not sloppy brawlers.
"Victor says you were the best asset the government ever trained," Silas said, slowly standing up from his chair, pulling a sharp, six-inch metal shank from inside his sleeve. The polished steel gleamed under the hallway lights. "He said you move like a ghost. But let’s see how fast a ghost can move when five blades are ripping into his stomach at the same time. Boys, take him down. Make it messy."
The five enforcers lunged forward at once, their metal blades flashing in the air, aiming for Leo’s vital organs.
Leo didn't panic. His military conditioning took over his body in a fraction of a second. He stepped inside the reach of the front attacker, ducking beneath the sweeping blade. With a brutal open-palm strike, Leo hit the man squarely in the chin, sending his teeth crashing together, knocking him out instantly before his body hit the floor.
As the second man swung a knife at his neck, Leo grabbed the man’s wrist, twisting it violently until the bone popped out of its socket. The man screamed, dropping the blade. Leo caught the metal shank before it hit the ground, spun his body, and drove the handle of the weapon directly into the temple of a third attacker, flattening him into the concrete.
The remaining two enforcers stopped mid-step, their faces turning completely pale as they looked at their three unconscious comrades lying in pools of blood in less than four seconds. They dropped their knives onto the floor, raising their hands in pure terror.
Silas backed away toward his leather chair, his hand shaking so violently he dropped his own shank. "You... you really are a nightmare," he stammered, his sophisticated voice cracking.
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Leo walked up to him, his boots clicking solidly against the concrete. He grabbed Silas by his orange collar, pulling his face just inches away from his own cold, unblinking eyes.
"Tell my brother his conference is over," Leo whispered, his voice dangerously low. "Tell him the Ghost is in his house now. And I’m coming upstairs to collect his head."
