I woke up in a hospital bed, my body screaming with pain, like it was falling apart at the seams. I'd lost count of how many times I'd ended up here. My phone buzzed, and I answered—it was a prison enforcer I'd been tipping to look out for my mom.
"Sylvia, your mom's been ‘specially handled' in there. You piss off someone important?"
My breath caught, and I stammered, "What… what do you mean?"
"Someone high up ordered extra ‘care' for her. No food, targeted by cellmates, ten hours under the sun every day for yard time."
The words hit like a lightning bolt, my head spinning, the enforcer's voice fading into a distant hum. The door swung open, and Nathaniel walked in.
I looked up at him, realization crashing over me. "It was you."
Only Nathaniel had the pull to make this happen. Especi
