Raiford Prison Fight
At Raiford, Florida, Inside the Raiford Prison, the prison gates were opened and the inmates were allowed into the yard. James dressed up in his prisoner attire, walked up to a bench and sat down. Surviving in prison had not been easy. It has only been ten months and his nose always had a plaster on the bridge. He was trying to fit into the prison living but had not been easy as some of the prisoners who appeared to be the leaders of groups formed in the prison gave him a hard time. One such leader was a man called TP. Meaning Tripple Punisher. He was short but well-built and had tattoos covering his entire body except for his face. He always moves flang by six other inmates who he had carefully selected. They had tattoos and they were well-built too. It appears everyone in the prison is scared of him. He had been slapped with a life sentence but he appeared not to care. In the prison, he was king. James felt was constantly bullied in the prison and he was trying everything to join this TP guy. He felt he would have some protection being part of his team but it had not been easy.
James sat on the bench with his head lowered thinking of what next he could do to get TP's attention. The movement of the inmates and the sudden tension announced TP's presence in the yard. James lifted his gaze and spotted him walking into the yard flanked by his six men.
"You want to be part of his men?" An inmate asked drawing James's attention to him. "You need to show you are brave and fearless. You look like a girl and act like a girl. TP can't work with such people," the man said and James just stared at him saying nothing but it did give him an idea about what to do.
James stood up and walked TP with his eyes fixated on him. While the inmates moved away from him James was rather walking to him. He blocked the man by standing in his way right in front of him. The men surrendering TP immediately moved to attack James but TP stopped them with a wave of his head.
"Yo, ain't we out here stirrin' up trouble in the early mornin'?" TP said in a deep voice with a straight face.
James didn't understand a word of what he had just said but hearing the word 'Trouble', he ascertained TP was asking him if he was there for trouble, so he replied trying to show he was brave and not just a pretty face.
"I am a Haward and we run the city with money and power. It took a Wellington to land me here. I can get away with everything. I am just wondering how a short man like you with no money, power and face girls will not even look at once, has so much power in a hell hole. I am not religious, but I would like to ask, are you the devil the world speaks of?" James replied in a deep voice sounding like he was the king of the mafia's making TP smile.
"Yo, you tryna act all hard? I don't mess with dames like you," TP scoffed.
"What are you talking about? Do you speak English?" James retorted.
"Yo, you best be findin' a translator. Step off, you lil' worm," TP said and waved his hand asking James to move away.
"Fight me?" James said out of the blue and everyone gasped hearing James's request.
"Fo' real? You wanna throw down wit' me?" TP asked surprised by James's bold request for a fight.
"Yes, just you are me. I win, I join your team. I lose, I walk?" James proposed determined to show his braviness.
James had no fighting experience. He protected himself with the gun. Jason was the one who was experienced in using guns and also fighting. Even though James was taller than TP, he knew best not to underestimate a man who had giant well-built men at his beck and call. TP laughed so loud, his laughter sounded like an earthquake as it travelled through the yard.
"I see you are a pussy and you are covering that with your laughter," James said unfazed and TP stopped laughing immediately.
"I'm down with your deal," TP said his gaze very terrifying.
With a wave of his hand, his men moved away and a circle was formed around the two men. The centre of the circle became their grounds for the fight. TP peeled his shirt off his body and James flinched at the muscles beneath but he stood his ground.
"This is just to show I am not a wimp," James thought as he positioned himself to fight TP.
TP stood there staring at James who appeared to be hopping and changing the position of his feet on the ground as he moved all over the place like he was trying to display some Bruce Lee moves.TP laughs and in one swift move, James finds himself flying and falling to the ground further away from TP. The ground moved backwards allowing him to fall heavily on the floor. James raised his head to find TP standing on one leg tilted to the side with his other leg up in the air. James held his chest and coughed out blood.
"This guy has some dangerous kick. I need to make sure his kicks or punches don't land. If not, I will be dead in two kicks," James thought and tried to stand up but fell to the ground. He remained on the ground for a while and stood up folding his hand into a fist and raising it.
"Okay, that was a lucky shot. Let's go again," James said with a trickle of blood on the side of his lips.
He spat out the blood and advanced towards TP. James threw a punch at him but he caught James's punch in his palm. Surprise, James threw another punch and TP caught that one too. Now with both of James's hands captured he pulled James towards him and kicked his legs. He quickly stepped away when he let go of his hand and James found himself suspended in the air but quickly fell to the ground and clenched his stomach in pain. He coughed out another blood but bravely stood up again to the surprise of everyone. The gathered inmates started murmuring wondering if James just wanted to get killed by TP. TP gave James a backward kick in the jaw sending James back to the ground, landing on his face. James could not get up this time even though he tried. TP walked to his side and pressed James down with his feet.
"Ain't nobody lived through a double hit from me, you took three. Gotta hand it to ya, you're tougher than I figured. You're in, welcome to the crew.," TP said. "I see you desperately want to join my team. I will give you the chance," he added in plain English which surprised James.
The officers got to the yard after the fight was over. TP just stood there as he took multiple hits from the officer who used their stick on him before he was taken away.
"Is he dead," James heard one of the officers ask and he felt a hand touching the side of his neck as James lay on the ground motionless.
"He got a pulse. He is alive," reported the officer,
"Take him to the infirmary and have a doctor attend to him. He is still a Haward. If anything happens to him we are screwed," James heard the officer say and he frowned.
He was in prison but still had protection? This was the thought running through James's head before darkness covered him and he could feel or hear anything again.
Hours passed and James opened his eyes. He scanned his environment and realized he was in a hospital. He tried to move his hand and realized he was cuffed to the bed. He frowned deeply. The whole of his chest region was bandaged and one hand was also in bandaged. That hand was left uncuffed. The curtain was pushed aside and James thought it was either an officer or a medical staff but his eyes widened when he saw the person who had just walked in.
"What are you doing here?" James asked breaking the silence.