The Name's Oliver - Ben Oliver. Ch. 159: Duty vs Ethics, Pt. II

[Seabody]

Schip, do you mind if we PM you with theories?

[Schipperke]

Schip, do you mind if we PM you with theories?

I don't mind at all, Seabody.  But I hope you'll understand that I'm not confirming any theories at this point.   

[RainBeau]

Hmmm. All right, I'll admit that I wasn't suspicious of the clocks. But I'm glad that Ben proved he's neither a rat nor a Lady Jane. And Darren sort of confirmed something I was thinking--this is very exciting!

[Schipperke]

Blood Island, Part VIII

Diary Entry

Yorick the ghost, who died in a shoe?  Just when I thought I was finally starting to get answers to this place.  Now it was beginning to look as if the whole lot of them were nutty as fruitcakes.

Darren saw the look on my face and burst out laughing.



"Not that kind of shoe!" he said, sputtering with laughter.  "S-H-U," he spelled out.  "It stands for 'Special Handling Unit.'  It's the supermax part of the prison.  When they threatened you with disciplinary action yesterday evening, that's what they meant.  If you hadn't stopped pounding on the cell door, they would have locked you up in the SHU.  So it's a good thing you stopped when you did."



Special Handling Unit.  I was sure I hadn't seen anything about that in the file De Luca had given me.  It was becoming apparent that there was a lot about this place that hadn't been in the file.  "Where is the SHU?" I asked Darren.  "Tell me about it."

"It's in the basement," he said.  It's locked.  The warden has a special key that only he is allowed to use.  As for what the SHU is like -" he shuddered and went pale.  "I can't talk about it.  Think about the worst place you can imagine, and the SHU is worse than that - much worse.  I spent a little time down there a long time ago, when I first got here, and even now it makes me feel sick to my stomach to think about it.  Conrad - you may not want to believe this, but he's a lot like you - a fighter.  He doesn't submit easily.  He's spent more time there than anyone else.  Anyone who survived, that is.  He didn't always have that hair-trigger temper.  Only since his last time in the SHU."



Darren was visibly disturbed by his memories of being in the SHU.  I didn't want to upset him further, so I changed the subject.  I asked him how long he had been in the Pen and what he was in for.

"Assault," he said.  "It was my wedding party.  A party-crasher started bothering my bride.  He wouldn't leave her alone.  I tried to get him to stop but he wouldn't and we got into a fight."

I wondered what Darren wasn't telling me.  It just didn't make sense that he would be charged with assault in a case like that.  "And the other guy?" I asked.

"What of him?" Darren replied bitterly.  "He was a blue.  Naturally he was totally innocent.  This was 35 years ago," he said sadly.  "I never saw my bride again.  Maybe she got tired of waiting for me and married someone else, I don't know.  I guess that would have been the best thing for her."



Thirty-five years for a fist-fight?  I couldn't believe my ears.  "How long was your sentence?" I asked.  "Surely your release date must be soon?"

"Release date?!" Darren said.  "Oh, Ben Oliver, you really are a gormless idiot in some ways.  No offense -" he hastened to add.  "I don't want to tangle with you, not after the way you mopped the floor with Conrad.  I'm an old man.  Ben, my official release date was years ago, for what little that means.  Don't you see - nobody ever gets out of Blood Island.  I'll be here till I die.  So will all of us, you included."

Just then the loudspeaker blared, "Prisoner 113, report to the Guards' Room!"

Darren looked sick.  "That's me."



The loudspeaker blared again, calling a second prisoner to the Guards' Room.

"That'll be Arnie," Darren said.



"Ah well, mustn't keep our lords and masters waiting," Darren said.  I watched as he and Arnie made their way into the building.



Diary Entry Ends.

Dear Readers, the name "SHU" is not my invention.  It is a supermax part of the penitentiary north of where I live.  I used to know people who had worked there, and the first time I heard them talking about it I was as confused as Ben, because it really is pronounced the same as "shoe."  The Correctional Service of Canada's website says:  "Offenders who are considered harmful to themselves and to others may be sent to the Special Handling Unit ... Inmates in the Special Handling Unit remain isolated from one another until they are able to behave appropriately in a less structured environment." 

You'll be seeing the Blood Island Pen's SHU in a future chapter.  I've never seen the real-life SHU, but I am confident the SHU in the story is nothing at all like the real one.  They wouldn't be allowed to build it in real life.  You'll understand when you see it.

[Audren]

Well, I can see why one would abbreviate it. "Alas, poor Yorick, he died in the Special Handling Unit" just doesn't have the same ring to it. I can't imagine what the SHU is like on the inside, though. Can't be very pleasant at all.

[RainBeau]

Well that's one mystery down! Hahahah

[ladybug53]

The SHU sounds like a pretty intense place . I hope our Ben isn't sent there but I would like to see what it looks like . Great chapter ! 

[JudesSims]

Schip, I always enjoy your stories. You're such a good writer! I'm jealous! LOL

[Schipperke]

Well, I can see why one would abbreviate it. "Alas, poor Yorick, he died in the Special Handling Unit" just doesn't have the same ring to it. I can't imagine what the SHU is like on the inside, though. Can't be very pleasant at all.

The SHU sounds like a pretty intense place . I hope our Ben isn't sent there but I would like to see what it looks like . Great chapter ! 

You think you're strong enough to withstand the sight of the SHU?  I warn you, it will likely be quite a shocking experience.  Definitely not for the faint of heart.   

Well that's one mystery down! Hahahah

More pieces of the puzzle are going to be revealed soon.  I promise.  And when they are, you can let us know whether your guesses/deductions were correct!

Schip, I always enjoy your stories. You're such a good writer! I'm jealous! LOL

Thank you very much, Jude!  But I think you're being unduly modest.  I've seen your stories - you're definitely no slouch in the writing department!

Thanks for the comments, everyone. 

[smartburn]

Theories! I have theories! But I also have plenty of buttons and shall use them accordingly. 

[Swirl-Girl]

Dude, I'm getting bad vibrations from this place.

[SassySimmer]

I don't have any theories but I am waiting with trepidation of the next installment!  I hope Ben will find some answers soon.

[Schipperke]

Blood Island, Part IX

Diary Entry

On the spur of the moment I decided to follow Darren and Arnie.  I waited until they had gone up the stairs and started after them.  But as soon as I set foot on the bottom step the loudspeaker blared, "Prisoner 306, move away from the stairs!  Move away from the stairs or face disciplinary action!"



I wasn't in a big hurry to be locked in the dreaded SHU, so I stepped down from the stairs and went in search of someone else to talk to.  Brian was standing alone.  I went up to him and saluted him.



He was taken aback.  "Who are you, anyway?" he asked.  "And what are you doing here?"



I told him I was with the military and that I had been sent in to deal with the riot - but there was no sign of a riot going on.

"It didn't last long," Brian said.  "They captured Ewen and put him in the SHU.  Then they threatened to lock us all in there if we didn't stop the protests.  The guys that have been in the SHU didn't want to go back, and the ones that have never been there are scared because of the stories they've heard about it.  Anyway," he shrugged, "it's not as if our protests were ever going to change anything."



I asked him what they had been protesting about.  "We're supposed to have recreational facilities," he said.  "Look around you - do you see any recreational facilities?  Do you see anything to read, any way for us to learn a skill or just while away the endless hours of boredom?  All we get is one hour a day out here on the asphalt.  There's no other way to burn off steam, nothing to do."

I agreed the prison was very spartan.  But I had seen the budget for the place, and I knew the city was paying for the prisoners to have educational and recreational facilities.  I wondered what had happened to the money.

"Take a look at the guards' quarters upstairs," Brian said.  "That's where the money goes."

I told Brian I had tried to go upstairs but they had made me turn around.



"I wouldn't be in a hurry to go up there if I were you," Brian said.  "Anyway, they won't want you for a few days.  Better enjoy it while you can - they'll be summoning you soon enough."

But why?  What were they calling the prisoners upstairs for, anyway?  And why wouldn't they want me for a few days?

"Because of how you smell," Brian said.  "It's so strong I can smell it, and I'm not one of them."

Smell?  I showered this morning, and again after working in the garden.  What was he talking about?

"You don't know?"  Brian said in astonishment.  "You really don't know what goes on here?"

Obviously there was a lot I didn't know about this place, and I intended to find out.  "Tell me!" I demanded.

[Swirl-Girl]

Ahhhg! How dare you. Those accursed cliffhangers!  Rage, rage, rage, rage....

[cndneh]

Ahhhg! How dare you. Those accursed cliffhangers!  Rage, rage, rage, rage....

*presses the like button... oops not on Facebook" 

Totally agree... cliffhangers  *grumblemuttergrumble*

can't wait for the next update!