CHAPTER 7

It had been a week since Edward came into possession of the great formula book. He had read extensively from its unending chapters, and his knowledge of the world of medicine had expanded tremendously. He delved deeply into the section on the spirogyra virus, working through the chemical formulas in the book to find a solution. Eventually, he did. Edward actually discovered the cure for the virus, but he was continuously surprised by the different formulas for various viruses and diseases he had never heard of. It made him wonder about the kind of mind his father had. Dr. Loyld was truly a genius.

However, despite studying the book as Mr. Lakes had instructed and waiting for his freedom, a week had passed, and he still hadn't been able to use his knowledge to escape the boring prison. Everything seemed to be going as usual, and there wasn't an outbreak of the virus. At one point, he started to doubt whether everything Mr. Lakes had told him was true.

He was seated in the dining area after lunch with his cellmates, Junior and Rodney, playing draughts when suddenly, one of the greatest nightmares in the prison appeared.

"Hey, young boy," a popular Mexican voice sounded, and they looked up to see themselves surrounded by the Black Vipers.

"Hey, you, what's your name?" the gang leader, Marcus Santosh, asked Rodney, who was seated with his head down.

"I'm Rodney," he replied, keeping his head down in fear.

"Okay, Rodney. I want you to do something for me. We just finished eating and accidentally dropped our plates on the floor. I want you to go pick them up," Marcus said, motioning toward some plates littered on the floor.

"Huh, but why? He wasn't the one who dropped the plates, so why tell him to pick them up?" Edward quickly replied to Marcus Santosh, boldly standing up to him. But surprisingly, Marcus ignored him as if he wasn't there, which puzzled Edward.

For a week now, he had noticed Marcus avoiding him at all costs, and he didn't know why. Marcus grabbed Rodney by the shirt and hoisted him up aggressively. "Get the fuck up and move now."

"What the fuck are you doing----" Seeing this, Edward wanted to challenge Marcus, but Junior stopped him.

"It's okay, it's fine. I'll do whatever they say," Rodney gently followed Marcus, who kept a firm grip on his shirt.

Junior sat quietly, not wanting to interfere due to his last experience with Marcus Santosh. Edward wasn't scared, but he was surprised. What had Rodney done to attract the Black Vipers' attention? Why were they picking on Rodney, who had been doing his best to avoid them? Edward wondered.

His thoughts were interrupted when Marcus Santosh kicked Rodney in the leg, causing him to crash to the floor. The Black Vipers began kicking him while everyone watched.

"Stop, stop that!" Edward didn't know when he stood up from his seat and got in their midst, pushing Marcus Santosh away.

"Hey, get the fuck outta here, you coward," Marcus said and pushed Edward away.

"But what did he do to you? Why are you beating him up?"

"Actually, he did nothing. He's paying for your sins instead. Since that rich fucker came to interrupt the amazing time I was having kicking your ass last week, I decided your friends would all pay for it," Marcus Santosh said, and Edward quickly understood what this was all about. Marcus couldn't touch him because he feared Donald, who had come to him the last time. Donald had instilled fear in him, so he chose to punish Edward's friends instead.

"He's not gonna be the only one though. I'm coming for that one over there," Marcus said, pointing towards Junior, who had remained seated since the drama started. "What I'm gonna do to him is gonna be way worse than last time," Marcus said, and all his men burst into laughter.

Edward could see Junior shaking in fear the moment Marcus pointed at him. Enraged, he replied, "You're not gonna bully any of my friends under my watch," gritting his teeth angrily.

"Oh yeah, or what will you do? Don't disrespect the respect I'm giving you now, boy. No one dares interrupt Marcus Santosh when he's kicking ass. Be warned!" Marcus said to him, his breath hitting Edward's face.

Edward could hear murmurs in the dining hall as he faced the Black Vipers, with most warning him to back off and let them do whatever they wanted. But Edward couldn't allow that. He didn't have the strength or the numbers to stand against the Black Vipers, but he had the guts and was ready to use it to help his friend.

"I can't let you touch my friends," he said.

"Then stop me if you have the guts," Marcus said and turned as the Black Vipers began beating up Rodney, who groaned in excruciating pain on the floor.

Clenching his fists, Edward charged towards Marcus Santosh and landed several blows on his face, making him stagger back from Rodney. Seeing their leader disrespected, the rest of the gang stopped bullying Rodney and faced Edward angrily. They lifted their hands to hit him but stopped at Marcus' words.

"Don't hit him," Marcus said with a sinister smile, moving close to Edward. "He's too small for us all to beat. Let me handle him myself," Marcus said and folded his hand into a fist. Edward froze in fear the moment Marcus lifted his heavy hand to punch his face, but suddenly, Marcus Santosh screamed mysteriously and fell to the floor, clutching his chest with both hands.

The prisoners in the dining hall stood up in shock as they saw Santosh lying helpless on the floor.

"What's happening?"

The Black Vipers gathered around their leader, trying to figure out the cause. The surprise on everyone's face grew when Marcus began vibrating subtly, his fingers twitching.

"Go call the medical team now," one of Marcus' men said. Shortly after, the medical team arrived and tried to examine Marcus, but the doctors all wore confused looks.

"What's the problem, doctor?" one of the Black Vipers asked.

"I don't know what's wrong with him. Did he hit his head?" the doctor asked, but everyone shook their heads. Seeing the confusion, Edward quickly recognized the symptoms and said,

"Allow me to check him," Edward said. Everyone turned to look at him, especially the medical team who thought he was just being a jerk.

"What are you saying, are you a doctor now?" One of the Marcus men asked with so much contempt in him.

"I'm a certified biochemist who graduated from Presvile University, and I believe I have much better experience than the prison doctors around here. So, just give me the chance to check him," Edward said. Hearing this from him, the nurses exchanged glances and nodded before stepping aside.

Edward crouched next to Marcus Santosh, who was vibrating, and quickly unbuttoned his clothes. Everyone flinched in shock when they saw his chest was green.

"It's the spirogyra virus," Edward sighed in shock.

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