Chapter One: You look familiar
Emma Cortland stared out the window as the scenery rolled by. She looked around the bus and the guard caught her eye and glared at her. How did she get into this? The handcuffs were cold around her wrists and around her ankles. The guard came down the aisle of the bus, glaring at her and everyone else on it.
"Ten minutes!" the guard yelled. Ten minutes until they arrived at Fox River State Penitentiary, making Emma the first woman at the prison. She wouldn't be in gen. pop with everyone else. She was to be kept in a separate section of the prison for life; mainly because she was a woman in a man's prison and because she was a murderer.
The bus pulled up to Fox River and Emma was yanked up out of her seat into a standing position and herded out of the bus. All of the inmates in gen. pop were watching as the bus unloaded, jeering and yelling at the sight of a woman. The guards hollered at them to shut-up and Emma noticed one man who wasn't yelling.
"Michael?" she whispered to herself.
Emma was shoved through the administration process and given a briefing by a correctional officer who seemed to hate everyone. His name tag read "Bellick" and he seemed to like to hear himself talk. She was told that even though she had a life sentence was going to be put on Prison Industry, run by John Abruzzi. She was then shoved into her dark cell and waited for yard time.
The door to Emma's cell was opened and bright light from the hall flooded into the darkness, almost blinding Emma, who had been sleeping. She groggily sat up and groaned at the sight of Cpt Brad Bellick at the door.
"Time for PI Cortland." Bellick barked. They traversed the halls of Fox River and Emma was handed a blue jumpsuit which she pulled on over her prison uniform. She was then lead to an unfinished part of the prison.
"Abruzzi!" Bellick yelled, holding onto Emma's sleeve like she was some kind of child who wasn't trusted not to get into any mischief. A scruffy looking balding man carrying a clip board came wandering up to Bellick.
"Yeah, boss?"
"Got another one for you." Bellick ordered, as if there was no negotiation.
"Don't need another one." Abruzzi argued.
"Well you're getting another one." Bellick snarled and shoved Emma forward. "Life sentence. Automatic PI."
Abruzzi sighed and glared at Bellick then looked at Emma. He then nodded at Bellick and Bellick turned and left. Abruzzi looked up Emma up and down.
"This is a men's prison." he said.
"Don't you think I know that?" Emma said. "Its maximum security."
"Ohh, one of those eh?"
"Just give me a job."
"Go over there and get a roller and some paint." Abruzzi said. "Then you're going to go over and paint by Scofield. Know who that is?" Abruzzi didn't wait for an answer, he pointed out Michael who was talking to someone. "When you get over there, tell him to get back to work." he scoffed and left Emma standing alone.
She grabbed and roller and paint from where Abruzzi had said and then made her way over to Michael. "Is it really Michael?" she thought. She put her bucket of paint down about three feet from Michael and it hit the ground with a loud noise, making Michael turn and look at her.
He looked confused at first and then he smiled. "Haven't seen you in a while." he said.