Jervis sat, or tried to sit, in the tiny room. There was barely any room to move. He didn't remember solitary being anything like this. Then he remembered Harley. He and Jonathan had thought she was making the whole thing up, although now that he was here, perhaps it was true? He shook his head. Of course not.
Well, the day was almost over, and there was no way he could spend the night here, he knew. That would simply be unthinkable. What one was supposed to do in scenarios like this was to think about what one had done to be punished. But he hadn't done anything.
Jonathan had seen how the chief of security had dragged Jervis away. He was too bored, and upset that Jervis had lost his privileges, and losing his own as well, to even give it a second glance. Perhaps when he got out, then they would see that he had learned his lesson, and would give them their things back.
Lyle went through his notes. He had also noted things the doctors would notice. Just like the comment he had made about several of the inmates not having an appetite. But Lyle knew just how to take care of that, as well, of course. And he would see to that now.
He thought it would not be good for it to be so sudden. Perhaps he should start with only a few. And the perfect ones would be the ones in solitary. Yes, he thought, that would be the surest way, so he immediately set to work on it. He looked at his watch. He had only allowed himself a couple of minutes before he had to get back to patrolling the next ward, so he would have to do this quickly, before it affected his routine, so he hoped it wouldn't take too long.
There was absolutely nothing he hadn't thought of, as he pressed a few keys. The lights would remain on-no, off, he thought. Off would be best? He debated with himself, wondering what would work most effectively, and keeping an eye on the clock. Perhaps…off he finally decided. He programmed them to turn off in that particular cell in…half an hour. Perfect, he thought. Now to add the new feature in the solitary cells. The concentration should be…35ppm, he decided. Or rather perhaps…40ppm. It should only start out being a rather moderate exposure.
This new method would be one of the most effective and best ones, Lyle knew. He consulted his chart. Jervis would only be the first one he would try it on. Smiling, he stood up. He could see everything and everyone on the many hidden cameras, and hear through the many hidden microphones. This pleased him. There was nothing out of his control. Nothing. He was in complete control of everything and everyone.