I'm sorry, I know I have 2 other fics but I can't manage to finish another chapter because of this fic here.
But I hope you like it. If not, feel free to tell me. :)
I own nothing!
It had been a year since she murdered Tom Connolly, a year in which she was on the run with number four on the Most Wanted list. A life as a fugitive wasn't fun at all. The first few months were the hardest, she grieved for the life she had lost, she cried at night because she felt incredibly lonely although she knew she wasn't - She had had him and he had her. But what she learned from this whole messed up situation was that humans were perfectly adaptable. Red thought of himself as a monster because he did horrible things and this was absolutely true but everything he did, he did for a reason. He wasn't a monster, he was just trying to survive and so was she.
They grew closer during the time since avoiding each other 24 hours a day had been rather difficult. He was a passionate reader whereas she loved watching a movie or tv show every now and then. They settled into a daily routine. Red prepared breakfast while she went for a run, she got used to his business and was involved in almost all his meetings. Sometimes he stayed away at nights when they usually played chess and she knew that he was with another women. He asked her if she had a problem with it. What kind of answer did he expect? Of course she said "No" but it was a lie. As much as she tried to think of something else, she just couldn't. Her heart ached when he closed the front door behind him and went to his "appointment" as he called it. Deep inside she knew why she was jealous but it was too soon to admit it to herself. She thought she had time. How foolish!
At this point she didn't know that time was about to change.
After 6 months of being a fugitive, she had managed to convince Red to help him with his business plans. They were supposed to meet with a turkish group in Miami. It was a minor meeting and Red had been in another one at the same time. He avoided leaving her alone like the plaque and if he had been with her this time she wouldn't have ended up in jail.
This whole thing had been an ambush by the FBI and she hadn't seen Red since that day. She knew he had to hide from the government but she didn't hear a word from him since 6 months. Maybe he left her behind and moved on. The thought alone made her heart clench in despair. Raymond Reddington would never leave her, wouldn't he?
As expected there wasn't a trial, they threw her into a cell and tried to get answers about Red's whereabouts. They tortured her, harmed her but she'd rather die before giving them answers.
It was already December when she went for her weekly walk in the yard. The cold air left her shivering as she watched the arrival of new inmates. The prison she was in consisted of male and female inmates although they were in separated sectors. With her hands buried in her coat pockets, she strolled over to the fence as men and women were lead over the yard. She was used to the obscene gestures by other men and just ignored it. Any sort of trouble would bring her in incommunicado detention and she spent 2 months in there after she refused to give the officials information. She only got food and water every 3 days and it was well known that you'd rather die of dehydration than starvation.
They almost broke her.
Her eyes wandered to a acquainted figure in a familiar orange prison suit. Although his hair was just a little longer and a gray stubble adorned his cheeks and the area around his lips, she recognized Red in an instant. He was handcuffed and walked, with his head held down, to the entrance.
She didn't know what to do and stood still at the fence, frozen in place. Did they catch him as well? He moved too fluidly to get caught which meant he wanted to be there but why now and not earlier? Her feet moved on their own accord back inside. She needed to talk to him. The sectors were connected by the chow hall though it was delimited by palings.
Sounds like a cliche but at least she had a chance to see him.
She avoided every single comment coming from the other inmates on her way and speed up instead. If he came for her, she would be out of there in the near future and it made her feel hopeful. On the other hand she was worried that something went wrong and he wasn't there freely. All she had to do was waiting a few hours.
Easier said than done though.
It felt as if the time passed by even more slowly but when the hall finally got fuller she was relieved to see him between two taller men. He didn't say a word and stared stoically at the back of the person standing before him in the row. He wore his expressionless mask better than ever, revealing no emotion whatsoever.
She quickly strode to the palings and handed a piece of paper to a warder, instructing him to give it to the "guy with the beard". Throughout her time in there she had made some useful connections, including one to the warder. Red's mentorship definitely served her well.
Impatiently waiting, she peeked through the bars and saw the warder coming back.
"He says he has no interest talking to you at any time.", he whispered with his back towards her.
She felt strangled when the words sunk in. No matter what she had done to him in the past, he never let her fall. He had always been there so why not now? She had become a harder person since she was there but she always hoped that Red would come for her and now he was there but he didn't want to see her. Blinking back the tears which threatened to fall, she turned around and almost ran out of the hall. Crying symbolized weakness and that was something you shouldn't be in prison.
Her vision was slightly blurred so she didn't see the person coming from the side and stopping her with his hands around her wrist.
"Inmate 2385.", he read from her ID and handcuffed her. "I'm instructed to bring you in the bunker."
Her shoulders cracked as he handcuffed her and she let out a small wince. "If you wanna ask me your lame questions again, good luck!", she scoffed.
On the other side she caught a glimpse of Red who was looking directly at her. He avoided any eye contact since he arrived and now that she was handcuffed and lead to the musty cell, he dared to look at her. His gaze was hard, cold even as if he didn't give a damn that she was going to be tortured again and that he and his business were the main reason for that.
She was pulled to the exit and held his stare as long as her neck allowed it. It was nearly invisible but his lips twitched up slightly into a frosty smile. He never treated her like that, it was so unusual and it hurt just too much.
She didn't care about incommunicado, she didn't care about torture, dehydration and starvation.
If she lost Raymond Reddington for whatever reason, she lost the will to survive as well.
To be continued if you're interested.