The gates to the Oblitus Penitentiary were heavily guarded and braced with all the security technology available. Lysandra had to state her name and wait until a guard came out to escort her inside. She had to let the guards on the inside scan her face and her eyes; she had to put her arm in a metal handcuff - a lie detector, probably - while she told them who she wanted to see and her relationship to that person.

"Simon Ferry," she said. "He's my father."

The guards watched the ...