Officers Chase and Maybourn entered the prison not too long after Vic Rudolph had discovered that the stone was missing. And even at this point, Officer Chase still didn't know what she had. If only she knew, she could have put a stop to this phenomenon with just a single wish. But she had yet to realize the power of the small stone in her pocket.
"It looks like things are pretty much under control here," Maybourn said, as they walked down the hall, passing cells full of prisoners (people who were presumably prisoners).
"Yeah," the guard said. "It's been nothing but complete mayhem ever since the phenomenon started. But recently, things seemed to have died down. And there haven't been any new cases of people swapping. Which is good, because I'd hate to see more of these bastards go free."
"I hear you," Maybourn said.
They walked a bit more, then stopped in front of one of the solitary confinement cells. They looked inside. There was no doubt. The one inside was definitely Vic Rudolph.
"Is he still claiming that he's someone else?" Chase asked.
"Yeah," the guard said. "And he won't shut up about it. It's obvious that he's trying to take advantage of this phenomenon situation. He actually thinks we're stupid enough to believe his story."
"And what story is that?" Maybourn asked.
"That he's a girl named Amy Johnson and that he's not supposed to be here. We checked. There is a girl named Amy Johnson. But she's not one of the swapped. It turns my gut, knowing that that piece of shit in there is using some innocent girl like that."
"How does he know Amy?" Chase asked.
"Huh?" the guard asked.
"He knows her by name, right? So, how does he know her?"
"How the hell should I know? Listen, it doesn't matter, okay? He's not that Amy girl. He's Vic Rudolph."
"How do you know Amy is who she says she is?" Chase asked.
The guard grunted. "I don't have time for your stupid questions. I've got to get back to ..."
"Just answer her question," Maybourn said.
"Because she told me, okay?" the guard said.
"And you believed her?" Chase asked.
"Why wouldn't I? She would never lie to me."
The officers glanced towards each other. Something odd was definitely going on here.
"Can I go now?" the guard asked, getting impatient.
"Sure," Officer Maybourn said. Then the guard walked away in a huff.
"Something's going on here," Officer Chase said. She shoved her hand in her pockets, feeling the stone with her right hand. "I just wish I knew what it was."
