Date: 16 Mar 25
Subject: ( Conclusion of : "Putting My New Identi...

( Conclusion of: Putting My New Identity To The Test" March 17, 2025)

So now my original appearance of a confused individual with a carefree attitude had to be changed to that of a disappointed revenge seeker, no longer having a justifiable reason to carry out his original plan. I'm not sure if I was able to get all of that on one face. However, with the way things turned out, I would say I was able to get the right message across.

Without taking my eyes off him, I stepped forward, reached down in his locker, and picked up my sweatshirt. I continued to stare at him as I backed toward the doorway, stopped, and then said, "Alright."

Okay. I realize that wasn't much of a response, considering the circumstances. However, with the tone of voice I used, the speed I said it, and the look I gave with it, my still-very-worried-one-man audience could have easily elaborated it to mean any number of different things. A few of which I was hoping for were:
1.) I'll let you off this time.
2.) You are one lucky guy.
3.) You better be glad you gave this back.
4.) Better not mess with ME again. (And of course...)
5.) I was on to you the whole time.

Any of those would have been just fine with me.

I stepped out of his cell, and walked along the catwalk to put my sweatshirt in my cell. Before entering my cell, I took one last mean-looking glance down in the day room -- just in case there was someone who was aware of what was taking place. I then entered my cell, pulling the door closed to an almost locked position. Then, after tossing my sweatshirt on my bunk, I. . . (Just a second. How did I describe that last time? Oh, yeah.) stepped in front of my mirror with a big grin across my face to enjoy another short span of egotistical reveling. However, this time the span was a bit longer, because my cellmate wasn't there to interrupt me.

I just want to be sure you have completely grasped the full concept of what took place -- in the returning of my property. There have been too many times for me to remember where I have been there to see a guy discover that his locker had been broken into, to which I would sit back and watch to see how he handled the situation. However, never once have I ever seen a prisoner have his property returned. Also, throughout the eighteen years since this occurrence took place, I have asked numerous prisoners if they have ever witnessed such an incident. Of all those guys, only two or three were able to tell me that they had. When I asked why they thought the return had been made, they said it was because the culprits later discovered that what they had taken belonged to a truly dangerous individual -- one who had a lot of friends in the right places to find things out.

Now, I'm not going to say that my. . . ruse of a reputation has made prison life easy for me. However, I do believe it has made things a bit less difficult.

(Come back next Monday for the start of my story entitled: "A Few Good Men.")