Chapter 13 - Behind Iron Bars
A week later, I found myself standing in front of the imposing, grey concrete walls of Leavenworth Penitentiary.
I didn't come here to negotiate.
I came here to deliver the final nail in his coffin personally.
The security process was invasive and completely dehumanizing.
I walked through metal detectors, surrendered my belongings, and allowed stern-faced guards to search me.
I didn't flinch.
I was escorted into a small, windowless visitation room divided by thick, heavily reinforced glass.
I sat in the uncomfortable plastic chair and waited.
The heavy steel door on the other side buzzed loudly, echoing through the sterile room.
Two massive guards led David in.
My breath caught in my throat for just a second.
He looked absolutely horrific.
The five years had aged him by twenty.
His hair was thinning and entirely grey.
His skin had a sickly, yellow pallor from years without proper sunlight.
He walked with a permanent slouch, the arrogance literally beaten out of his posture.
He sat down across from me, his chained hands shaking as he picked up the telephone receiver.
I picked up mine, staring at him with eyes as cold as ice.
"You came," David rasped, his voice sounding like sandpaper.
"You got my letter."
"I got your letter," I confirmed, my voice steady and completely void of emotion.
"Did you bring the transfer papers?" he asked, a desperate, wild gleam appearing in his hollow eyes.
"Did you talk to your father?"
"I didn't talk to my father," I replied slowly.
"I talked to the FBI."
David froze, the color completely draining from his already pale face.
"What?" he whispered.
"I gave them the letter, David," I explained calmly.
"They intercepted the safety deposit box yesterday morning."
"The money is gone."
"It has been returned to the clients you stole from."
David let out a guttural, animalistic sound of pure agony.
He slammed his shackled hands against the glass, startling the guards behind him.
"You stupid bitch!" he screamed, spit flying from his mouth.
"That was my only leverage!"
"That was my ticket out of this hell!"
I didn't blink.
I didn't lean back.
I simply watched him unravel.
"You never had any leverage, David," I said, my voice cutting through his screaming like a blade.
"You are a criminal."
"You are a wife-beater."
"You are a thief."
"And you will die in this prison."
I stood up, smoothing the wrinkles out of my tailored designer skirt.
"Lily is beautiful, by the way," I added casually.
"She is brilliant, she is kind, and she doesn't even know you exist."
"Her grandfather is the only father figure she will ever need."
David broke down into loud, pathetic, heaving sobs.
He slid out of his chair, falling to his knees on the filthy prison floor, begging me to come back.
I placed the phone back on its hook.
May you like
I turned my back on him for the very last time.
I walked out into the bright, beautiful Kansas sunshine, taking a deep breath of absolute freedom.
