End of chapter 3
Chapter 4 – Caged
Confined to her cell, Melissa’s emotions flooded to the surface. She paced the length of the cell to the wall, then back towards the locked door. She grabbed the inner bars and futilely shook them as if that was going to bring her closer to freedom.
“I don’t believe this” – thought Melissa – “How can they just take my life away from me like this? Am I supposed to be a naked and chained animal for the next two years? And for what? I haven’t done anything wrong!”
Melissa’s internal monologue continued for a while in a similar tone of self-pity until finally she was able to take a deeper breath: “Ok” – she thought – “I need to think clearly for a second. So much has happened in a short amount of time and I just don’t have any information. I need to find out how to contact mom and dad. I didn’t see them in the courtroom. I wonder why? Maybe they just couldn’t bear to look. That’s probably for the better, but I want to see them as soon as possible. That’s another thing to find out – when can I have visitors? I sure hope they’ll give me something to do here. This cell is completely empty! I’ll go crazy of boredom in a few days if I’m kept here. They didn’t let me put my clothes back on and gave me nothing else to wear so I guess the rumor about this place was true!”
Melissa sat down on the cell’s bed and looked down to her hands. The handcuffs fit rather snuggly around her wrists and looked so surreal against the backdrop of her naked body. She raised her bound hands and moved her arms in opposite directions as much as the slack in the cuffs would allow. There was no reason for her to be chained inside the cell since there was clearly no way of escaping so the purpose of the handcuffs must have been psychological. They were a constant reminder to the fact that in the eyes of society she couldn’t be trusted with having her movements unrestrained. As if she was going to attack anyone! A lithe and delicate girl like her who has never even been in a fight.
There was no clock in the cell so Melissa had no sense of the passage of time. The cell, being underground, obviously did not have any windows and the only light, built into the ceiling, gave off an unchanging glow. Melissa looked around, but she could not find any switch to operate the light. It seemed that such liberty was not afforded to ICBG prisoners. The sparse amenities inside the cell comprised of a metal bed or cot in one corner, a small toilet in another, and a tiny table with two stools around it. Melissa began to understand that her life was now utterly outside of her control. She would be told when to eat, sleep, work, and who knows what else. Her cheek was still stinging from the slap administered by the guard. It was unfathomable. Throughout her short adult life, men were always exceedingly polite to her, intimidated by her beauty, flattering and agreeable almost to a fault while trying to gain her favors; and now this. Obviously the rules of society, as she knew them, did not apply in this place. She was at the mercy of her jailers and who knows to what lengths they would go to ensure that she is “reformed”. Was there even a limit to their authority over prisoners? Prisoner! Inmate! That’s what she was called several times in the past few hours and every time it happened she wanted to object – she is not a prisoner or an inmate. Other people, bad people may be, but not her. The words were still buzzing in Melissa’s ears and nearly brought her to tears all over again. In her entire 23 year-long life, she had not experienced half the humiliation that she’d gone through within a single day. Melissa found it particularly unsettling to be restrained in chains in front of other people. There was something deeply humbling about it – the overwhelming awareness that those around her were free to move as they pleased while that privilege was no longer hers. It made her feel so low. “Is that the point?” – she thought – “Everything about this place seems to be setup to make me feel as insignificant as possible. As far as I know, even high security prisons don’t keep people naked or handcuffed in their cells.” Melissa once again became acutely aware of her nakedness and she curled into a ball on top of her cot as if trying to cover up from prying eyes. “I have to try to get through this somehow. I am sure they are not going to keep me here for two years, it will be a couple… maybe a few months at most.” – she thought hopefully. “I wish someone would talk to me and explained what I need to do to get by. How can I get any information when I am either gagged with that horrible muzzle too cruel to put on a dog and I can’t speak without permission when my mouth is free?”
Almost as if in response to Melissa’s last thought, she heard footsteps outside her cell and then the sound of a key working the lock. The now familiar officer Burridge opened the solid metal door.
“Are you settled in by now young lady? I have someone here with me who will speak to you about the rules you must obey.”
Officer slid open the barred door and entered the cell. Following him was a woman, who looked around thirty five years old and had a look and demeanor of a bored office worker.
“This is assessor Shelby.” – introduced the guard – “Mrs Shelby, this is Melissa…”
“Prisoner P5237” – corrected the woman, obviously not a big fan of the guard’s informal and conversational tone. “I am going to be your assessor. Each prisoner is assigned one and it will be my job to evaluate your behavior as you serve your sentence.”
“Sit here at the table” – said the guard to Melissa. The girl, having already got up from the cot as the pair entered, moved towards the table and sat down on the stool pointed to by the guard. There was a small metal ring mounted on top of the table. The guard produced a padlock from his elaborate belt, which featured a number of steel and leather implements such as pairs of handcuffs, a collar, a baton, a couple of short chains, and several more padlocks; apparently a well stocked arsenal of a jailers tool belt. The guard reached down toward Melissa’s hands and grabbed the chain between her handcuffs and pulled it onto the table. He affixed the padlock such that it went around Melissa’s handcuff chain and the table ring, effectively securing the prisoner in her place. Mrs. Shelby sat opposite Melissa and put a folder of papers on the table. She taxed the pretty prisoner with a rather scornful and aloof eye, stopping longer on the round and full breasts, shaking her head as if in disapproval:
“No wonder you ended up here… nature’s been way too kind for you to become a decent person. I can already see that you’ll be a difficult case to work with and we’ll have to break some sweat to cut you down to size” – Mrs. Shelby obviously had her mind made up about Melissa. “Let’s start going over rules. I’ve been told by the officer that you already know about the speech restrictions for inmates. Let me just add that you’re allowed to ask questions while I am here, but don’t interrupt me too often, make it count. Now, about your accommodation: you’re a level C prisoner, which means that you’ll generally be spending 16 hours a day in your cell and the remaining 8 you’ll spend doing your assigned duties. These could be work assignments, obedience training sessions, behavioral schooling or punishments. Many activities that you’ll be a part of will seem like punishments, but they are in fact essential to your progress here. Back to your accommodations – you will remain naked throughout the duration of your sentence, which will run for two years. You will be handcuffed most of the time, whether inside or outside of your cell and, in addition, you’ll generally be shackled outside. You might occasionally get a reprieve from restraints, but you could also be restrained a lot more strictly, especially if you get written up for disobedience or other misdemeanor. The key, as you probably started to figure out, is to follow the rules and orders. Do you have any questions so far?”
“How often can I have visitors?”
“Not for the first two months. After that you’ll be permitted a monthly visit from at most two persons. These visits will be the only times when you’ll be allowed to put on clothes and they’ll be taken away immediately after.”
“Will I be able to have anything in my cell? There’s nothing here. How about books?”
“Good question. Maybe you’re not a total waste of space despite those shamelessly large breasts. Here at ICBG, we fully support intellectual progress of our prisoners. Each inmate is assigned two books to read every week, chosen by the prison, and those who have filled the quota can pick one additional book from an approved list. Failure to read at least two books will result in some severe punishments so you’d be wise to keep that in mind. You will be tested for knowledge of your assigned literature and in fact the circumstances of the test will be somewhat unpleasant for you. But you’ll cross that bridge when you get there. Let’s just say that the quicker you can answer the questions – the easier you’ll make it for yourself.”
“Can I have some pen and paper as well?”
“No, you cannot. You are not allowed to hold in your hand anything that resembles a sharp object unless you’re closely guarded and properly restrained. You might occasionally be allowed to use a computer in our small lab, but don’t count on it unless you earn some serious points for good behavior.”
“Now, let’s see, what else…” – pondered the woman – “Ahh, yes, you’ll be fed regular meals – these will be dropped through the slot on the bottom of the door. Make sure that you eat everything that is provided and do not keep any items. Your cell can be searched at any time and if anything is found that doesn’t belong… well, it will not be pleasant for you. Other than that, the main thing is to always do what the prison staff is telling you to do. If you can manage that, you’ll do ok. With time, you will begin to understand the reasons for and long term benefit of such strict rules. I will be reviewing your progress monthly. I will have full insight into the record of your transgressions and if I deem them severe enough, you may be assessed appropriate punishments. You might even get reclassified to an even stricter imprisonment regime so try your best to stay out of trouble. That’s all for now. Officer!”
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