Chapter 3

Hey guy, here's another one, enjoy.

...

My silence means I am tired of fighting and now there is nothing left to fight for. My silence means I am tired of explaining my feelings to you but now I don't have the energy to explain them anymore. My silence means I have adapted to the changes in my life and I don't want to complain. My silence means I am on a self-healing process and I am trying to forget everything I ever wanted from you. My silence means I am just trying to move on gracefully with all my dignity.

…..

This was unexpected. Out of handcuffs? The kindness was unexpected and shook her out of her element a little. She had learned not to trust it a long time ago, and it had seldom been given anyway. When it was, it usually had strings attached. She tried not to make waves, kept her head down all the time, be inconspicuous if she could help it, in that orange jump suit. She tried to walk with all the dignity she could master, though God only knew it made very little difference with where she was coming from and where she was doomed to go. It wasn't pride or rebellion, God knew she had not the energy to maintain that anymore. It was just dignity, the one thing from her upbringing they seemed to not be able to take away, no matter what the humiliation. She was led to the ladies, guarded of course, but she was being given a little bit of freedom here. Freedom she hadn't known on the plane all the way here. She had learned to hold it for a long time, it took training.

Then she was given food to eat, good food and she hadn't eaten long before the flight here. She never asked, and the Marshalls had never asked, probably never even thought about it. Prison breakfast was served at 6am on the clock but she had skipped it, surprised she still had nerves, but this court this was just another thing out of her routine. She had thought she had managed to squelch every fear she could have possibly had in her ten years in maximum prison. But she was surprised to find she still had something to fear. What was this new court case? Where they going to put her to the guillotine now? She didn't know if she wouldn't prefer that to continuing this endless misery for whatever length of life she had left. Her stay in prison had had her hoping she didn't have a long life ahead of her, but this new idea of getting executed had her stomach knotted in fear she skipped breakfast. Because of her effort to remain unnoticed, she had been forgotten. She was hungry now, but she ate in small bites, not waiting to choke on it. These people were nice.

When it came time to proceed with their journey an hour later, he two detectives had walked with her to the plane. Their handling of her was impersonal but considerate and she was grateful for that. She didn't want them to die, but it was unfortunate because they insisted on getting involved in her business. Or they had unfortunately been assigned to her. It was never a good idea. She settled on the window seat, one of the guys, the blonde one sat next to her and the other tall dark one sat opposite her. She settled in her seat and looked out the window, and that was all the action she was going to offer, talk only when talked to.

…..

Steve settled back in his seat and studied the prisoner; she was obviously not much for conversation. Just the usual yes sir, no sir, thank you. She was actually polite, or maybe that was prison programming. She kept her face averted almost at all times, never looked at anyone straight in the face except at that one time when he had taken the cuffs off her. The only time he had really looked at her face. She managed to remain as small and invisible as she could possibly make herself in an orange jumpsuit. Steve decided not to draw any opinions of her, he shouldn't have any opinion, he was just transport. But he hated it when he didn't know something he felt he had a right to know. He knew he should better leave that alone and just do the job.

Bing!

His phone's message alert rang. Text from Danny. The guy was sitting right across from him. Steve looked up at him questioningly with a raised eyebrow and Danny nodded for him to read the text.

He did.

'What are you thinking?'

'Can't you just talk to me?' Steve typed back but with a scowl on his face directed at Danny.

"Can't, when the person I want to talk about is sitting right next to me.'

'You mean gossip?'

'Precisely.'

'Looks like she's sleeping.'

'Oh, she's faking it. She can hear everything around her, even this back and forth. Shut that binging down!'

Steve smirked but turned the message alert off. 'Done. Happy now?'

He got a squinting emoji with a stick-out tongue. Steve laughed.

'Again. What are you thinking? About her I mean. Just so you know what I'm talking about.'

Steve shrugged. 'I don't know. She doesn't talk all that much?' Steve shrugged again.

"Of course, she doesn't talk much Steven, she's a prisoner! What do you expect her to make small talk?!'

"Daniel! You asked what I was thinking. That's what I'm thinking. About her, I mean. Just so you know what we're talking about.'

Danny glared at him and sent a red face emoji.

Steve smirked. "Whoever taught you to use emoji's…" Steve tried to say.

"Eh eh eh, type. Can you do that?" Danny hissed, casting subtle glance beside him at their 'sleeping' prisoner.

Steve rolled his eyes. "Fine!" He typed.

"So?"

"What?"

"The girl Steven!"

"Right, well she doesn't look all that dangerous but yeah…, she is a prisoner, for mass murder, so…'

'She was young.'

'Yeah.'

'And pretty.'

Steve rolled his eyes at Danny. 'Really? You saw that when? She's been keeping her head down most of the time.'

'Only takes one glance. Don't tell me you don't have an opinion.'

'Well, we're not supposed to have one, she's a prisoner, pretty or not.'

'It's a pity. She's got manners and such.'

'Manners and such?' Steve smirked

'Polite, you animal. Well bred. In her time, she must have been a well-bred lady. Wonder what happened there.'

'Psychotic break they say.'

"Yeah, well she seems alright to me."

"Until she shanks you. Don't tell me you're trying to hook me up with a prisoner here.'

"It crossed my mind.'

"She is serving life! Daniel! How do you propose to do this? Conjugal visits every few weeks? Brilliant match maker you."

"I'm just saying, she'd have been great for you. Without the mass murder rap sheet and all. If she'd just been sweet little Dr Mallory. I see the two of you hitting it off. Great conversations in silence you two would have." Danny typed with laughing eyes at Steve.

Steve smirked. 'I thought you'd advise me to try and stay away from psychos, Danno.'

"Everybody's a psycho, Steve. You have a psychotic break every few minutes. You two would make a great match."

Steve couldn't help but laugh outright. He had not felt like laughing much these past few weeks but not one day with Danny was ever dull. He would find himself laughing in spite of himself, even in the least funny situations.

"I hope you know by 'everybody' you've included yourself on that list too.'

'I can't deny I break out a little bit, now and then. If I'm being honest.'

Danny was laughing too by now.

The hostess came at that very moment to tell them that they were about to take off and to turn off their phones. Steve nodded but sent one more text to Danny.

'Red alert though, can't afford to drop our guard. She is dangerous.'

Danny just nodded and turned off his phone. It was a 7HR flight to Jersey. They could talk about anything else, play a game, watch movies. Their charge seemed to have fallen fast asleep, one thing that Steve and Danny couldn't risk doing. Who was to tell what their prisoner was capable of doing to them if they dropped their guard, even a little.

…..