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“But I’ve been avoiding the guys who I fought,” I say. “I promise I won’t unless I have to.”
“We have some developments on your case.”
She spends the next ten minutes briefing me about what she and Carlos are putting together for when a trial date is set. I should be finding out sometime next week. I halfheartedly listen at the beginning. By the end, I’m distracted by the mere presence of her.
She looks so good. So damn good I’m overwhelmed just staring at her through the plexiglass.
A simple v-neck shirt and tight jeans I’d love to peel off her. Her hair’s in a huge, curly puff, showing off her beautiful face. I see the way a couple guys notice her, and it triggers a territorial caveman aspect of my brain.
Suddenly, I don’t like that she’s here. That she has to be at this correctional facility to see me, even if I’ve wanted nothing more than to see her.
Luckily, she has my security with her. Stitches and a couple other guys are escorting her today.
I palm my hand against the glass and speak into the phone. “Enough trial talk, Phi. You can tell me all this over our regular phone calls. I want to hear about you. Tell me everything. How are the cats?”
That earns a small smile out of her. “Missing you almost as much as I am. Salt sits on your favorite spot on the sofa.”
“Good to know he’s keeping it warm for me.”
“The bed feels empty without you.”
“But you’ve been getting rest?”
There’s something off I can’t quite put my finger on. I’ve known Delphine since she was fifteen. I’ve spent countless hours watching her, studying her, understanding her. Over all those years, I’ve come to know her better than anyone.
Which means I can usually tell when she’s keeping things from me.
The issue is, I can’t tell if it’s grief over my stint in jail, or something else.
Maybe a combination of both.
I make a mental note of talking to Stitches about it the next time we speak on the phone.
But I want my whole time devoted to Delphine.
So that’s what we do—for the next hour, we sit opposite each other and pretend we’re not separated by the plexiglass. That I’m not in an orange jail uniform, and she’s not having to do extensive legal work on my defense for trial.
We chat like we’re home alone in the evening, settling on the sofa to watch movies. I promise her we’ll take another long vacation as soon as I’m free. Just me and her. And the cats. Wherever she wants to go.
The hour is up too soon. Instead of sixty minutes, it feels more like five. Delphine and I pretend like we can feel each other’s hands through the glass as we rise together and say goodbye. I make sure to catch Stitches’s eye on the way out.
My look is returned by a nod of his head. He understands my message—take care of her.
* * *
I receive my trial date. It’s set for a month out. Meaning I’ll have at least two or three more months behind bars before I have a chance at freedom. That’s if I’m found not guilty. Otherwise, I’ll be sentenced to who knows how many years in prison.
Those details I don’t focus on.
As more days pass, I develop a routine. I get by in small increments. Moment to moment. Hour to hour. At night, I know how many hours of sleep to expect before one of the guards bangs their baton on the cell bars and wakes us up. During the day, I pay attention to whatever hour I’m allowed to do what.
That means, during free time in our cells, I’m engrossing myself in writing letters. I’m cranking out more pushups and other basic exercises you can do without equipment. I read books. Lots of them. Even the Bible to Elmer, who is grateful.
Most importantly, I keep out of trouble. I avoid LaTessa, and he seems to be avoiding me too. Our paths don’t cross nearly as much as they did during my first week. Apparently, all it took was knocking him out twice before he understood I’m not one to be fucked with.
I’m assigned a job within the jail. I’m on laundry.
It’s one of the more frequent jobs. I’m required to spend an hour a day washing people’s uniforms, sheets, blankets, and everything else that needs to be laundered. The couple other guys who work laundry are decent enough that the role’s not so bad.
