Chapter 1

- I think we got it Ma'am, we found the way to keep them quiet and finally empty our facilities !

- Are you sure Miriam ? What do you have in mind ?

- We're going to treat them with Doctor Stein's formula, make them addicted to the thing and once out they'll stay out of troubles as long as we can provide the stuff.

- What does the comity think about it ? Won't they be difficult to convince, after all this is quite an unorthodox method.

- They already agreed to it, we even have our first candidates for the test. They're all volunteers, everything will start tomorrow.

- Well then, I hope you know what you are doing.

- Don't worry Ma'am, this time, I'm sure...

High Peak Women Penitentiary, the next morning :

Amanda Perkham, a 20 year old arrested in a bank robbery was purging her 20 years sentence in the high security quarter. She landed here after a fight where she stabbed another inmate, in fact it was more of an accident, the other woman, once pushed away by Amanda, landed on a fork and her femoral artery got badly injured. The other made it, but they took it on Amanda for the example.

Luckily for her, one of the nurses treating her after the facts in which she also got some scratches, believed her story. To help her, she inscribed her to a new experimental reeducational method that could make her leave the prison in a bit more than a year. She couldn't resit the temptation of freedom, even if everybody, even the nurse, were very puzzled by the secrecy of this new method. But after some weeks of questioning, it was finally time for her to find out.

- Good Morning Amanda, I hope you're ready for an experience that will change your life forever.

- Who are you ? Amanda asked, surprised to see no one but a short woman in white blouse in the middle of the big room she was sent in by two heavily armed female warden.

- Oh yes, excuse me, I'm doctor Stein, but if you wish you can call me Irene. I'm going to introduce you to the treatment you're going to take for now on.

- Treatment ? I thought it was going to be some kind of reeducational stuff... Amanda was having a sudden after thought. Was she going to test new drugs ? That was certainly why it seemed so easy, they were going to give her unauthorized treatment and buy her silence by releasing her earlier if she survived it.

- It will be. I see in you eyes that you're afraid, you must think you've been tricked. Don't worry, we don't consider you as a guinea pig, we're not going to play Dr. Frankenstein on you. The doctor smiled at her warmly.

Feeling a bit relieved, she then listened to the doctor's explanation about what was going to happen to her for the next weeks. She was going to be moved to a new single cell with all the comfort she would need and even a TV and a computer, monitored, of course. Then, twice a day, she will have to take orally some pills that will relax her and make her more receptive to the next step. Of course, she stayed very evasive about that next step, arguing that it was to guarantee the true efficiency of the drug. She also learned that even if she was going to be alone in her cell, nine other inmates, all around her age, were going to be subjects of the experiment too. Dr. Stein, Irene, told her that their social reaction would be very important for the first part of the study. Then, the good doctor told her not to worry, that everything was going to be fine, and she wished good luck and good bye.