CHAPTER 2

She sat up. It was the middle of the night and she couldn't sleep. She needed fresh air, as the night outside was still and no air was flowing through the window. She swung down from the bed quietly and paused, hearing someone move slightly. It was Zigzag. He rolled over and groaned.

'Where are you going?' he murmured sleepily.

'Outside for some fresh air – it's too stuffy in here,' she whispered back.

'I'll come with you, wait a moment.' He groaned and sat up, holding his head. It took him a moment to adjust his night vision and he climbed out of bed. Mel opened the door, wincing as it creaked a little. She slipped through and left it ajar. When they got outside she took a deep breath and felt her head clear.

'So why do they let us go out here at night? Aren't they afraid of us running away?' she asked Zigzag.

'Where would we run to? With no food or water we wouldn't last long. Even if we did have provisions there isn't water within 2 days drive in a car. One guy, he had only just arrived, well he tried to escape. A day later Mr. Sir found him dead. A yellow lizard had bitten him,' he said.

'A yellow lizard?' she asked.

'Yeah. One bite from them and you're gone. It only takes a few minutes for it to start having effects on your body. First, your legs go numb; you can't feel them any more. You can't walk anywhere or run to get help. Then your arms jam and your muscles go slack. Eventually it just shuts down your insides, and stops your heart. There's no pain – it all happens one after another.'

Mel shivered. What a horrible way to die. 'So have you ever seen one?'

He looked surprised. 'Of course. The Warden keeps two in her office. I was sent in there once for fighting with X. She walked over to the cage and just picked one up. It was scary. Anyway they only come out in the heat of the afternoon to sunbake and there shouldn't be any here inside the Camp.' They stared out into the deep of the night, each thinking their own thoughts.

'So why were you sent here? You don't strike me as the type of person to meddle with the law, or do anything serious,' he asked, glancing at her briefly.

'I was accused of stealing a box of chocolates. Of course, at the time I was at home watching TV but do you think they listened? I even told them what had happened in the episode but they didn't believe me. They said I could have just asked a friend. What about you?' she asked him, leaning forwards with interest.

Zigzag hesitated, looking at her. She was so beautiful, her curls falling gently past her shoulders, her face bathed in the moonlight. She had leaned towards her, waiting for an answer to a question he'd forgotten. She drew back slightly and asked again. He blinked. He'd have to tell her the truth.

'I killed my sister,' he whispered, looking away so she wouldn't see the tears forming in his eyes. He heard her gasp and whisper an almost silent, 'what?'

'She was in a lot of pain; she had a rare medical condition that affected her whole body. She was three years older than me at the time and she asked me to put her out of her misery. We had always been close and it hurt me to see her suffering so much, so I did as she said. I slipped a poison into one of her drinks; she knew of it, of course. It was a poison that made the consumer fall into a deep sleep and never wake up again. She had left a note behind, in case what had been done was discovered and I was convicted of murder. The Court didn't really take any notice of it. At the time, I was old enough to be sent here, but young enough that I couldn't get a life sentence. I only did what she asked. She only had a few months more to live anyway, that's what the doctor told us,' he whispered, choking back the memories. 'That was two years ago, and I still have another 18 months to serve. I was sentenced three and a half years.' He looked up at her to find her blue eyes full of sympathy.

'I'm so sorry, I had no right to ask you, you didn't have to tell me all this,' she said, shocked.

Mel's heart went out to him. What he had done was no crime, it was a simple misunderstanding, just like hers, she realised. She put her arms around her and hugged him close. She had seen the tears in his eyes when he had first confessed. He didn't really know what to do – how was she supposed to comfort someone who had been through what she couldn't even imagine?

'I told you because you're the only one who has ever listened to me,' he said quietly. She squeezed him a little tighter and then let go, leaning against him, suddenly sleepy.

'I'll always be here to listen to you, if you ever need someone to talk to,' Mel offered. He nodded his thanks and suggested they go inside to catch a bit of sleep before they had to get up to dig. She followed him inside and even when she was lying in bed it took her a long time before she fell asleep.