The warden halts, as if he senses something is up. He sniffs the air. He turns towards the bed, where I'm hiding. I freeze and even hold my breath. He approaches the bed and touches the curtains. Not only that!

A device on the dining table rings. He turns back and walks up to it, leaving the bed alone. Whew, thank goodness...

He pushes a certain button on the device and calls out:

"Yes?"

"Lord Warden, you'd like your usual breakfast?"

"Oh, yes, Melanie. Uhm, do you have chocolate muffins?"

"Yes."

"Send some up for Knut. He'll have breakfast with me. Oh, and, the third cup of tea too. We're having a guest."

"Yes, Lord Warden!"

"Oh, Melanie, and some pains-au-chocolat! I almost forgot."

"Alright, Lord Warden!"

The call drops. The warden heaves a sigh, drops into an armchair at the dining table, and crosses his feet. He begins to hum a song while tapping his foot to the floor. Soon, I discern the song as "Billie Jean" by Michael Jackson. And here I thought these deviants had no sense of culture whatsoever... Is this really the same guy who burnt Derek to death back in the dining hall? The way he's ordering chocolate pastries and humming songs while snuggled up in his armchair... It doesn't really tie in. But then, serial killers in the movies always seem harmless too. I don't really know. One thing is for certain - this man is truly nuts.

The warden grabs the remote control and turns on the computer. It contains the same prison data as Knut's one. He opens the cameras of the rodent district and begins to watch the show, of how Bob and his felines are beating some rat prisoners who have apparently broken a certain law. I only see the warden's back, but I'm pretty sure he has no emotions whatsoever while watching this dreadful bloodshed. The felines are the worst opponents for any rodent, and now, they're using their claws to overpower the already-downed prisoners. Curse it...

Knut is there, judging the main culprit - a middle-aged rat-man, Clive. He's got an eye-patch on the left side, just like Bob. I gather the one who's cut their eyes out should be the same person, and they're not really a sane one.

I know Clive - he's one of those old-timers who have agreed to cooperate with us but were never trustworthy. I begin to worry now - I hope he won't disclose anything about us if he's tortured.

The warden pushes another button on the remote control and raises the volume so that he can hear everything they're saying. I too, on my part, can perfectly hear what's going on.

"I'm asking for the last time - where's the hole you're digging?" Knut asks.

Oh, no... I've told them to dig the hole only a week before the break-out! What are they doing? Dagur's warned me to strictly follow the plan, or else, the administrators would find out! Curse it! I knew one shouldn't trust Clive and his rats! He's apparently wanted to break out on his own since he heard our perfect plan. If he gets found out now, the entire plan will be ruined! Ugh, why did Annabelle ever inform him? I swear I'm going to kill her for this!

"What hole?" Clive laughs into his face, "Ye're having hallucinations, all of ye kitties?"

Knut's fur takes the yellow shade of a spotted leopard, and his eyes too, glow yellow. He grabs Clive's neck with his claws and lifts him as if he indeed were a tiny rat:

"I'm giving you the final chance before I burn your neck to bits, Clive Jonas."

Knut truly is terrifying when he's about to punish prisoners. He looks almost like the warden now. It makes me shudder.

The warden raises the volume even more. I guess he's rather enjoying the show. He should be the one to have taught Knut all those atrocities. He seems quite proud of it, this monster.

Clive Jonas only grins, even if he's being suffocated. He doesn't reply. Soon, however, he lets out an agonized shrill - Knut's released the fire from his hand to burn his neck, as he's warned. When the fire subsides, Clive's neck is already bleeding, full of blisters. He coughs blood:

"It's... It's all Theo Sinclaire..."

Now, a frown covers Knut's face. He throws Clive to the floor and turns to Bob:

"Continue torturing them until they reveal the location of the hole. Everything must look perfect before the queen's men arrive."

"What about him?" Bob points at Clive.

"End him."

The warden turns the computer off. I can hear his chuckles from the armchair. I, on the other hand, am trembling in my hiding place - Knut's just ordered to kill a person... Well, technically, he did well since Clive has already named me the mastermind and now I'm surely going to be summoned by the warden and questioned, if Knut, as my kind caretaker, doesn't jump in and resolve the situation. But the worst is - Bob and the other administrators, even the warden, know about the uproar now. If again, Knut doesn't save me and my entire group, we're doomed.

Someone knocks on the brown door that leads outside. It opens and a merman - one of the cooks - walks in with a cart full of the food the warden's ordered: three empty cups, and plates of chocolate muffins and pains-au-chocolat. He places all of it on the dining table and bows to the warden:

"Enjoy, Young Lord!"

He walks out and wants to close the door when Knut enters. The merman bows to Knut too and leaves with the cart. Knut closes the door behind him, walks up to the dining table, and drops into another armchair. He still looks upset, his yellow eyes glowing with rage. I guess he's angry that Clive has denounced me so easily.

"Knut, if you please..."

The warden motions him to the empty cups.

"Oh, right."

Knut holds his claws above the warden's cup. His eyes gain tints of blue and green but retain the yellow colour too, while his fur gains tints of white as a snow leopard and black as a panther. His claws release some fragrant hot herbal tea. When the warden's cup is filled, he also fills the two others.

"Three cups, though?"

"Oh, yes, about that..." The warden chuckles, "Theo Sinclaire, over with your hide-and-seek, please."

No way - he's known I was here, this whole time?!