The Warden

The things he asked of me were a huge risk, but I didn’t have a whole lot of other options, and four and half years, give or take, in this place, was a long way off. Anything could happen, including not surviving.

“I’ll do it, but I want to know I’m going to get out of here.”

Our eyes locked on one another and we came to a silent understanding. Information for freedom. I could live with that and if there was anything pleasurable in-between, I could also live that.

“That’s my Nene baby.” He planted a quick kiss on my parted lips. The touch was nearly non-existent it was so quick before he walked away, leaving me to follow confused as ever.

“Come on, Nene, back to your cellblock.” He didn’t stop, and I touched my lips to see if I could conjure the brief touch once more, but it was definitely gone as I scurried to catch up. Once again I felt off kilter unsure how to navigate my brave new world. Cohen Sheppard blew hot, cold and it seemed everything in-between.

I might have been leaving the cold darkness of solitary, but part of it stayed lodged deeply within me on my exit back to the yellow halogen lights of my cell.

Ten

Cohen

We played a game of cat and mouse. I stalked her around the prison grounds, and she pretended she didn’t like it. I left her little notes in her underwear drawer when her cellblock was empty, and she gave me what information she could scribbled on paper and secreted inside a worn copy of Gulliver’s Travels-an unspoken joke between us.

Today I was going retrieve it early.

“Warden.” Raina nodded. She gathered her son and various baby items excusing herself. I let her know I would monitor the library while she changed her baby. By the looks of his happy gurgles he currently enjoyed hanging out in the baby sling wrapped against her chest. She’d had Julius in the infirmary a few weeks ago, and I kept a liberal policy on mothers and infants. Currently the prison had half a dozen children under the age of one on site. Raina had made bad decisions in her life but so far she was a good, loving mother. He would be taken from her by the state Children and Family Services and placed in foster care soon enough. There was little I could do about it except keep them together as long as the prison board would allow. The more time I spent here, the more I saw the that there were so many cogs in the wheel of the system. I was sad to see the other side of it badly broken and dysfunctional. It wasn’t that Raina didn’t deserve to face consequences. I only wondered how much of a disservice the coming separation would be to her son and her rehabilitation. The door clicked shut and Raina was gone. I pushed the maudlin thoughts away and hunted out the reason for coming here in the first place.

I locked the door behind me, happily checking the aisles noting only one other person here beside myself.

“I waited for you at the laundry.” I walked up behind Nene who was on a ladder putting a book away. My hands braced on either side of her locking her in. She placed a book on the shelf ignoring me. I reached for her ankle squeezing it gently and rubbing the small bone under my thumb.

“And I told you I didn’t have any other information.” She didn’t turn to look at me, so I let my hands graze her rigid legs on the ladder. She sounded upset she had nothing to give me.

“I didn’t ask if you had information. I wanted to see you.”

She sighed glancing down, “Maybe I didn’t want to see you.”

I snorted which made her turn to look at me from her perch on the ladder. Her eyes told me a different narrative than the untruths coming from her pouting lips.

“Untrue.” I let her take a step down into my arms. Her backside at the height of my face. I hadn’t touched her since the brief kiss in solitary, and I regretted not doing more with her when I had the chance. I planned on changing that.

Her voice breathless, “This is getting risky.” I agreed with her assessment, but I didn’t care about the risk, only if it harmed her. Until then I wanted whatever time I could have with her. The faster this was over the better I would feel.

I decided to give her what good news I did have.

“My boss is looking at your case.

” Convincing James wasn’t easy. He finally relented once he realized I wouldn’t let this go. He knew I could be like a dog with a bone and it was far easier for him to help me out then it would be to ignore my request and let me go rogue.

She hummed acknowledging me. I pulled her pants down slowly, exposing her skin inch by inch. The pale globes were dotted with bruises and I kissed each one. When did Nene come to mean something more? We were a means to an end and yet I didn’t want to let her go. I knew, deep down, I wouldn’t let her go.

She shuddered moaning,“What did he do?”

I bit her ass leaving a bite mark. My claim.

“Do?”

“Yeah, to owe you such a big favor.”

I responded, “It’s more like what I do for him.” I kissed the underside of her ass where the skin dipped in a smile. I licked tasting her. Spicy and fresh. I wanted my mouth all over her.

“Cohen, not here.” Her breathing changed, hands attempting to temper me and failing. I pushed her to lean over against the shelving that was bolted into the floor, my arm around her waist, and no chance of her falling.

“Why not?” I pressed in to lick her inner thigh and wedged myself between her legs. She smelled sweet, hot, and mine. A combination of her strawberry shampoo and musk made my mouth water. I hadn’t realized how hungry I was for the sultry fruit found only between her thighs. I would break the law for her.