For nine days, Geneva Perez has been trying to reach her husband in prison. And for nine days, she has been told she cannot talk to him.

Prison officials have assured her that everything is fine. But she does not believe them because, in prison, it almost never is.

Ms. Perez’s husband is serving a life sentence for murder at the Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora, N.Y., where two inmates made a stunning escape a little over a week ago. Since then, the prison’s 2,600 inmates have been under a 24-hour lockdown each day.

Communication with the outside world has ceased. No visitors or phone calls are permitted. Mail delivery has been inconsistent.