Pablo walked to the basketball court calmly; plots were never his strong suit, and he tended to make mistakes when dealing with truly hypocritical people. Reading those kinds of individuals gave him headaches; he preferred someone who showed their colors from the get-go, which is why he believed in Billy. Someone like him didn't seem like a bad guy; he had seen him practicing music tirelessly and rarely getting into trouble, other than following the solitary path.
-Pablo, my friend, the drug problem is sorted out. – said Frozt, the tall guy, standing with another similarly sized person, Big P.
-Really? – Pablo asked, surprised.
-Yes, Austin had the drug, and we've got it now. – said Frozt.
Pablo just felt relieved and calmed down from there. -Man, it's good that everything is okay. Let's play some basketball; I need to practice my magic shot. – said Pablo.
-Pff, that shot is useless against my defense. – said Big P.
-Haha, man, you're still too naive, too innocent for my taste. No one reacts to my black shot; as soon as you jump, the ball marks three points. – said Pablo, making gestures of shooting a long-range three-pointer. Pablo got lost in the basketball game that lasted almost an hour; he saw Face of Dog arriving, in a bad mood, but he didn't pay attention.
The face of Dog was whispering furiously with Buggs. In a few minutes, the whispers turned into a heated argument that interrupted the basketball game, and the thirty kids gathered. Pablo couldn't hear anything.
-Wait, so who has it? – said Lit, a guy with a shaved head.
-Face of Dog went crazy and couldn't get it. – said Buggs.
Pablo had a hunch.
-Wait, didn't you guys get it recently? – said Pablo.
-No, it didn't happen. Austin told us who had it, but Face of Dog missed the chance to retrieve it. – said Buggs.
-Wait, it's a lie; it's all Austin's lie. He's targeting the newcomers to expand his gang and wants to set an example so that those without a gang join him. – said Pablo.
-How do you know? – asked Buggs.
-Buddy, you know that snake, and besides, I'm friends with Billy. He was with me, and we searched his locker and looked at the bed, the entire bed. He told me how Austin threatened him, said it's a trap from Austin; he's been threatening all the rookies. – said Pablo.
- So why did you keep it to yourself? – said Buggs.
-Frozt said we already had it; I thought Austin had caved under group pressure and chickened out. I don't understand why we still believe that snake, who usually acts like a coward, but when he can, attacks everyone. What happened to our brother Jay? He's in Arizona, eating beans because of that idiot.– said Pablo.
Knowing that Face of Dog had beaten Billy, hands red, bruised, knuckles purple, and even more that crazy look that only happens when you've given someone a beating.
-Face of Dog, how badly did you hit the new kid? – said Parks.
The face of Dog turned his head, and Pablo cursed under his breath; everything had gone to hell. This was a sign; that he had gone too far, and now he might be transferred to another correctional facility. This young man's third offense and Arizona awaits a correctional facility for troubled kids, an ugly prison in a desert, without visits and stricter people than the ones present.
-He won't say anything. – said Pablo.
The face of Dog looked up.
-Are you sure, Pablo? – Parks asked.
-Not entirely, but Billy is not a bad guy, but he probably won't say anything like this. The cameras might have recorded Face of Dog, and I was there before; the whole group might get in trouble. Depending on the Face of the Dog's damage, there will be a thorough review of the bunks if the guards already know about it. – said Pablo, - The guards will detect the problem, and we lose the sale and the favors of the jail. -
The entire Black Gang was devoid of the happiness and cunning that characterized them; now, a stunned image of silent kids, even so, the security guards were already suspicious due to the calm atmosphere in the dining hall.
Some guards didn't know what had happened, but the entire prison was already in motion. After the blows and Billy's bleeding head, the superintendent sent him to the hospital without delay. He found himself genuinely angry; the sympathetic face vanished, replaced by that of a military man who had served in the war in his youth. It wasn't characteristic of Charles, but now he would have juvenile services sniffing around more carefully; he would have to confiscate everything and remove some activities.
Even the chief of guards had already implemented strict monitoring; you don't mess with the kids, especially when it's a public service of the state. Everyone would be on it the next day, even the mother, according to the understanding there was, the mother would go and fight hard.
James Johnson had already conducted a complete investigation. Although the cameras didn't capture sound perfectly, a clear picture of what might have happened had emerged.
-Another gang game. Call Andrew and Benson first, then send Nicolls and Justin Renner. – said James.
While taking notes in his notebook, almost like a detective, he noted all the suspicious behaviors. Nothing caught his attention; Billy left the music class at 5:10 pm, talking with Pablo, with no fear, and from there, they went to the second floor and then the first. Pablo left Billy at 5:45 pm, looking happy. Still on the second floor at 5:30 pm, Andrew and Benson entered suspiciously and left laughing. James followed the balance; they were on the second floor at 4:50 pm, so James traced everything he could. He understood two main things: Austin's gang was plotting something.
Rico entered. – with a transparent bag containing many presumably illegal items – showing it. Along with some sharp objects and more material, they searched all the rooms, even the lockers were opened, and they found a significant amount of contraband.
-It seems like you've had fun in these months while we relaxed the surveillance. – said Rico, along with two other colleagues. Silence was present, and James clenched his brow tightly, only problems and more problems.
-Call education and youth, have the guards I'm going to mention replaced and report the government policies of Superintendent Charles. – said James, quite furious.
*****************************************************************
The small ambulance and paramedics were present, checking Billy's signs, and assessing his battered state.
-No obvious fractures and the head blow is just a mild one. I applied some antibiotics to reduce inflammation. When we get to the hospital, they will do the X-rays if there's any concern. – said the paramedic.
Many of Face of Dog's blows landed on Billy's forearms, as well as on his face and some on his chest.
-Blood pressure readings are normal. – said the paramedic.
In fifteen minutes, they arrived at the hospital calmly. The neck brace was there, along with the bruised appearance; his face was swollen after some time.
...