Redemption by Susanne M. Beck

Author:Susanne M. Beck [Beck, Susanne M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780648570905
Publisher: AUSXIP Publishing
Published: 2019-09-02T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter 26

But it was over. At least for the time being. True to her nature, Ice closed up once again, as if our evening together had bared too much of her innermost self to me. I won't say I wasn't disappointed, because I was, but I also tried my best to understand things from her point of view. Each delving into that battered soul gave me more insight into the woman that I was able to confess freely if only to myself, I had fallen in love with.

However, each baring of that soul came with a price to her and to me. I suppose it's akin to a leeching out of toxins in the body. You always need a recovery period just to regain the balance you'd lost.

In the meantime, I kept myself busy with my library work, my teaching, and even managed to allow myself to get roped into playing on the so-called "Inmate All-Stars" softball team that was set to go up against the guards during the first week of summer.

My status as an Amazon allowed me to speak to people I wouldn't have dreamed of speaking with before. I listened to their concerns and questions and tried my best to help in any way I could. As I've said before, most of the Bog's inmates weren't hard core lifers. Most were young women serving short sentences for stupid mistakes. Though I helped as much as I could with their continuing education scholastically, I wanted to do more to help prepare these women for their eventual lives outside these prison walls. With the help of the guards, several non-profit organizations, and the local universities, I was able to set up various classes for the inmates. Classes such as "Anger Management," "Parenting," "Household Budgeting," and "Career Paths" were, surprisingly, very well attended. It made me feel good to be able to have a positive effect on the lives of my fellow inmates if only to do my best to make sure that once they left the Bog, they'd never return.

My second spring in the Bog also saw the first time I was able to intervene in a fight without assistance. And, in fact, I didn't even need to resort to violence.

I was on my way to the laundry room to pick up some clean uniforms (and if you've managed to stay with me this long, you'll no doubt remember my warning about prisons and laundry rooms) when I stepped into the outer antechamber and saw two inmates, both rather new themselves, standing over another prisoner who'd just gotten out of segregation. All three wore bruises of beatings past, the kneeling woman's fresher and more vivid against the pale tone of her flesh.

I came fully into the room, letting my presence be known by the force of my stride. The kneeling woman looked up at me with a plea in her eyes; the others, anger. "What's going on here?"

"I don't see as it's any of your business," one of the standing ones replied.

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