Escape
The last thing Trace remembered clearly was standing with the other inmates in line for breakfast. Then the transport lurched, throwing the men into each other. As they elbowed and shouldered themselves back into formation, the alarms went off. Steel bars slid down over portals that showed nothing but deep space. More bars locked over the doorways. Trace’s heart pounded in his chest as he watched the exits being sealed off so effectively. Around him, the other prisoners stared wide-eyed at the doors and portals, thoughts of escape shining like sweat upon their faces.
The ship rocked again as the power went out, and the men tumbled together in the dark. Somewhere close by, a gun went off, the report deafening in Trace’s ear. He threw himself down to the cold metal floor, away from
