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Ayesha
A member of the National Guard whose unit was absorbed into the Exclusion Guards, Jake is a guard at Camp Mobius who doesn’t believe it’s acceptable for the government to incarcerate Muslim Americans. So, he dedicates himself to helping Layla and other incarcerated Muslims in the camp stay safe and protest their internment. A kind and compassionate person, Jake begins by helping Layla get in contact with David, and he even coordinates David’s visits to see Layla in the camp. Later, despite his reservations, he helps Layla find the time and the safe places from which to plan protests. He also helps her and others in the camp get to safety when things get scary or violent. And he spreads Layla’s blog posts and even writes his own when he can no longer sneak Layla’s out. However, Jake chooses not to protect Layla when he receives orders to “let things play out” and allow the Director to interrogate—and physically assault—Layla, so that his superiors can get footage of the Director engaging in illegal acts. Later, during the novel’s final protest, he throws himself in front of Layla, taking the Director’s bullet and subsequently dying.
Corporal Jake Reynolds/Compass Tattoo Quotes in Internment
The Internment quotes below are all either spoken by Corporal Jake Reynolds/Compass Tattoo or refer to Corporal Jake Reynolds/Compass Tattoo. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 5 Quotes
He clears his throat. “Private, I think we can let this slide.”
“Sir, the internees were given clear orders, and so were we.”
“There are bathrooms on this car for a reason. We can’t expect all of them to stop having bodily functions, can we?”
The stocky guard glares at me, shifting his weight from one foot to the other, then squares himself to the other guard. “No, sir.”
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Chapter 7 Quotes
Again, I’m struck by the Americanness of the throngs of people. Every race, dozens of ethnicities, different ways of dressing, and, certainly, widely varying opinions about politics and life and Islam. But I guess that’s the old America. Now we all have one thing in common—a religion that makes us enemies of the state. The state all of us are citizens of, the one most of us were born into. As we approach the Hub, I’m gutted by another realization: The armed guards, the ones looking down on us—they’re all American, too.
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Chapter 15 Quotes
“During the trial I think Sophie said, ‘Somebody, after all, had to make a start.’ Didn’t she? I think I remember seeing that in my textbook. And she was right. Somebody has to make a start. And it might as well be us.”
Ayesha gulps. “But you want to do leaflets in here?”
“No. I want to write stories that will rile people up on the outside. And I’m going to ask David to get them out there. I know he’s afraid. But at some point we have to stop talking and start reminding people of who we are. Americans. Human beings.”
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Chapter 26 Quotes
“Anyway, I wound our way to Heart Lake—it really is shaped like a heart. And my mom hugged me and told me to trust myself, that I had a good heart. Then she said words I’ll never forget: ‘A compass doesn’t tell you where you are, and it doesn’t tell you where you have to go. It can only point you in a direction. It’s up to you to always find your true north.’ That’s the last hike I ever took with her.” Jake breathes deeply and looks off toward the mountains.
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Chapter 32 Quotes
Jake was doing what was necessary, but there is this chasm now between us. People make sacrifices to change the world. In the big picture, maybe my being offered as bait will make a difference. But it doesn’t take away the horror of being dangled on a hook to catch a big fish. One day, I’ll have to deal with it, but I can’t now. For now, I have to push the feeling away, lock it in a place so it can’t hurt me anymore.
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Corporal Jake Reynolds/Compass Tattoo Character Timeline in Internment
The timeline below shows where the character Corporal Jake Reynolds/Compass Tattoo appears in Internment. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 5
...why Layla is out of her seat and looming over her. Another guard with a compass tattoo on his arm joins them in the vestibule and asks what’s going on—and he tells...
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Chapter 6
...tackles him. The mother screams that the boy doesn’t understand, and the guard with the compass tattoo helps the boy up and back to his mother. Layla watches the guard with the...
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Chapter 7
...American—as are the guards pointing guns at them, even the possibly nice one with the compass tattoo .
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...follows Ayesha back to their block and does a double-take when the guard with the compass tattoo nods to her from the end of the block.
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Chapter 8
The guard with the compass tattoo startles Layla, saying she shouldn’t be here. Layla lies that she lost a necklace that...
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Chapter 9
...to take a walk with her before curfew, and from his post by the trailers, Corporal Reynolds catches her eye briefly.
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Chapter 10
...and look concerned; she’s going to start crying. Approaching the end of the block where Corporal Reynolds is stationed, Layla wipes away real tears and tells him that she needs to make...
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Corporal Reynolds tells Layla she has two minutes to use one of the phones, and he turns...
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Chapter 11
...the Mess and takes a moment to close her eyes and enjoy the cooling air. Corporal Reynolds interrupts her, and when he grabs her elbow, Layla apologizes for being late. She’s terrified,...
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...Layla thanks him. She doesn’t really trust him, but he asks her to call him Jake. Before they part ways, he tells her to think twice about whatever she’s planning—it’s too...
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Chapter 12
...their bedrooms don’t have cameras. They want to know what Layla has been doing with Corporal Reynolds , and Layla tells the truth: she asked to call David. Mom is terrified, and...
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Chapter 13
...herself today, Layla decides to take a chance. Outside, she saunters past the guards, including Corporal Reynolds , and pretends to trip and hurt her ankle. When he comes to check on...
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...insists he’s coming anyway and asks if anyone can help her. Layla tells him about Corporal Reynolds , and David suggests Reynolds is trying to trick Layla and get her in trouble....
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Chapter 14
...minutes to talk to David—though this still isn’t safe. He reminds her to call him Jake and then leads her to a small toolshed, warning her to speak quietly. When Layla...
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...if you tell them to save yourself. David again insists he’s just afraid, and then Jake opens the door and escorts Layla back across the camp.
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Jake offers Layla a tissue and says that David is just trying to help her; he...
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Chapter 15
Layla spends the next day fixating on Jake’s “insha’Allah”—what does it mean?—and on David’s apology note, which Jake passed to her earlier. Now,...
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...and see that the people here are both human and American. Soheil is skeptical that Jake will be willing to help and that this is a good idea at all, but...
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Chapter 17
...and the other disappeared people. When she’s finished, she folds it up, thinking of how Jake agreed earlier to get this note to David. If they get caught, this will probably...
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Jake startles Layla right outside her door and, after an awkward greeting, he tells Layla to...
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David explains that Jake got him the uniform and snuck him in with the sanitation service, but then he...
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Alone with Layla, Jake laments that he let Layla pass David the story. He warns Layla that he can...
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When Layla argues that people wouldn’t be okay with this if they knew, Jake explains that this is why the Director doesn’t want information getting out. Additionally, the entire...
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Chapter 18
...fast and shares what happened with the Director. She insists that she was okay because Jake was with her, and that she trusts him. But still, the fast doesn’t feel big...
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When Layla is done gardening a few hours later, Jake joins her and explains that his mom loved gardening—she died when he was 12. He...
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...up to let Ayesha in when she hears a knock at the door. But it’s Jake, asking to come in. He leads Layla into her bedroom and closes the door behind...
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Jake continues that the Director fears a guard left Noor’s hijab. The Director trusts Jake now,...
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Chapter 19
...She passes him a note, tells him about the hunger strike tomorrow, and they discuss Jake. David doesn’t trust him and insinuates that Jake and Layla might be romantically involved, which...
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Just then, Jake enters the Mess and angrily yells for them to come out. When he reaches Layla...
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Jake helps Layla up, apologizes for the “accident,” and suggests they head for the infirmary. The...
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Jake gives David to another guard, Fred, telling Layla that Fred will get David to his...
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Chapter 21
...Cross cars pull up, and the Director addresses the internees. He ignores the protestors. As Jake directs Layla and others away, he tells Layla that her post and the Instagram video...
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...hoax, most of the prisoners were sent to Auschwitz. In comparison, Mobius looks like paradise. Jake insists on accompanying Layla and Ayesha to the garden, where they’ll plan the fast with...
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...25 people ready to participate. They’ll all sit at the first table so they’re obvious. Jake says the Director will be angry, but who knows if he’ll punish anyone with the...
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Chapter 22
...volunteers as the fire alarm goes off. Ayesha drags Layla out a side door to Jake, who leads them back to their block. It’s chaos outside; protestors and the press are...
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Jake stops helping Layla’s neighbors and drags her into her Mercury Home. After wiping the dust...
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Just then, Mom and Dad enter the trailer and stop when they see Jake. He tells them all to stay inside and leaves. Immediately, Mom and Dad chastise Layla...
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Chapter 24
...that people here aren’t just going to disappear now with all this attention. According to Jake, protests are growing nationwide, everyone is reading Layla’s writing, and the news is talking about...
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Just then, Jake walks over and gestures for Layla to follow him. Apologizing, he whispers that the Director...
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...going to be here for a long time, they should be friends. He calls for Jake.
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Chapter 25
...Soheil were here to help them as they reach the garden. There, Layla goes to Jake and another guard to get gardening tools. Jake introduces Layla to Fred and then says...
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Layla gathers everyone at the garden and begins slowly handing out gardening tools. As Jake and Fred stroll away, a boy named Abdul questions whether they can trust them and...
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Chapter 26
As Layla watches her parents head to the Hub, she begins to tear up. Jake appears and asks if she’s okay, and with Fred keeping watch, he sits down next...
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Jake admits that he wrote a blog post of his own and sent it off, and...
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Chapter 27
Layla can’t stop thinking about Jake’s mom’s advice about “finding your true north.” On her way to dinner with Ayesha, she...
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...begin to grab and punch her fellow protestors. She falls to her knees, sobbing, until Jake pulls her up and tells her to run. But Layla turns back to look at...
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Chapter 28
Layla wakes up when her cell door opens. Jake appears, apologizes, and doesn’t answer Layla’s question about how Mom and Dad are. He explains...
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Fred explains that though Jake is worried about Layla, he has to follow orders. But he knows he and Jake...
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Chapter 29
...security guards have entered her cell. They handcuff her and duct-tape her mouth. Fred and Jake are nowhere to be seen, and Layla fears she’s being taken away forever—especially when a...
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...tell him who’s writing and disseminating the blog posts. Unsure if the Director already has Jake in custody, Layla looks momentarily afraid, giving away that she knows. Continuing, the Director orders...
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...of guards are on her side. He also explains that since the Director still trusts Jake, Jake is trying to use that to their advantage. People outside are almost at the...
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Chapter 30
Jake bursts in and tells the Director to leave. He even pulls out his weapon and...
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Chapter 31
Jake settles Layla on the bed with an ice pack and a blanket. He apologizes for...
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Jake carries Layla back to her Mercury Home. Layla watches the sun rise over the mountains—a...
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Chapter 32
...her heart breaking—the Director, she believes, is successfully breaking her. Layla opens the door when Jake knocks and implies that she feels responsible for every death and abduction at this camp,...
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...news agency is covering it. The Director, Fred says, is hiding in his office. Angrily, Jake suggests he should go confront the Director, but Fred and Layla convince him not to....
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Chapter 33
When Layla wakes up the next morning, she’s alone, but Jake left a note explaining that the minders will announce lockdown at roll call. As Layla...
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Chapter 34
...But the guards split into two groups, some joining the security guards and seven, including Jake, joining the internees. Thinking of Mom and Dad, Layla demands for the gates to open...
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The Director, however, gives the order to shoot Layla. Nobody moves, except for Jake, who shouts at the Exclusion Guards on the steps to stand down. All the guards...
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Chapter 35
...Exclusion Guards close in on him. Layla’s on the ground, covered in blood, but it’s Jake’s blood, not hers. Layla puts her hands over the gushing wound in his stomach, but...
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Chapter 36
...everyone who died here and remember them forever. Somehow, even though she scrubbed her hands, Jake’s blood is still on them. She’s finally getting what she wanted, but it feels unreal....
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...with Mom and Dad toward the Hub. She can hear ghosts whispering and thinks that Jake, and so many others, died here so that other people could go on and live....
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