Jenna Macintosh glanced up from the trial transcript she was reading, but the prison gates she was monitoring from the warmth of her car remained steadfastly closed.
Typical. The Montana prison system didn’t care that Jenna’s client had been waiting for this moment for nearly three long years. The system moved at its own pace, and even though Jenna had been told that Lacey Gallagher would be released by eight, it was now nearly ten and there was no sign of her.
The windshield was starting to fog up, and Jenna cracked her window and cranked up the fan on the heater to try to clear it. Billings, Montana was supposed to be enjoying a whole thirty-five degrees today, but it felt far, far colder to her.
She brought her attention back to the transcript but got distracted thinking about the three hour drive ahead of her. If the prison delayed Lacey’s release much longer, there was a high risk Jenna would be driving through snow on the return journey once she’d delivered Lacey to her home town of Marietta. The thought made Jenna’s stomach tense, and she frowned down at the thick document in her hands. If worst came to worst, she could handle a bit of snow. She had good tires on her ten year old Volvo SUV, and she’d be travelling on major roads. It was stupid to get all sweaty about it.
And yet here she was, sweaty. That was the awesome thing about her subconscious – no matter how many times the rational part of her brain gave it a stern talking to, her subconscious went on its merry way regardless.
Movement caught the corner of her eye and she glanced up. The heavy-duty pedestrian gate was opening. Jenna reached for the glasses she needed if she wanted to see anything clearly at a distance, sliding them over her ears just as someone stepped outside. The woman’s shoulders were hunched against the cold, her long brown hair pulled back into a no-nonsense braid. She was holding a heavy-looking plastic carrier bag, and she glanced around uncertainly. Jenna tossed her paperwork to one side and hastily scrambled from her car.
“Lacey!” Jenna waved to attract the other woman’s attention, and Lacey’s head swiveled her way. After a small hesitation, Lacey started walking, and Jenna met her half way.
Up close, Lacey was very pale, her big, green eyes wide as she absorbed her first few minutes of freedom. Jenna had seen that look before on recently released inmates. For nearly three years, Lacey had dreamed of this moment, but now it was here, and all the problems she’d left on the outside – plus a whole host of new ones – were about to descend on her. Then there were all the things she’d have to get up to speed on, because the world hadn’t simply stood still while she’d been wearing prison khaki and living in a concrete and steel box. Taylor Swift had conquered the world. Gay marriage was legal, and marijuana was heading that way. The world had changed, while Lacey’s world had become so small and focused she’d almost disappeared.
Even though their relationship was a professional one, Jenna couldn’t stop herself from throwing her arms around Lacey and giving her a big hug. Ideally, Lacey’s older brother, Sawyer, would be here today, greeting Lacey on her first day of parole, but he hadn’t been able to get away from work, so Lacey was going to have to simply suck up having a hug forced on her by her lawyer.
“Hope you haven’t been waiting too long,” Lacey said, belatedly lifting her arms to return Jenna’s hug. “‘There was a situation in one of the pods and it slowed everything down.”
“I got some work done, no problems.” Jenna couldn’t stop herself from beaming at Lacey.
For over a year now, she’d been getting to know this quiet, smart, determined woman. After hearing about Lacey’s story via another client, Jenna had taken the time to look into Lacey’s case, and it had quickly become evident that Lacey was the victim of a gross miscarriage of justice. Ever since then, Jenna had been advocating for Lacey in any way she could, going through her court records looking for grounds to have her conviction overturned, keeping Lacey up to speed on her parole application.
And now, here they were – day one of the rest of Lacey’s life.
“You want to grab something to eat? Maybe some real coffee? There’s a Starbucks nearby.”
Lacey’s wide mouth tipped up at the corners, slowly becoming a full smile.
“Is it too early for a pumpkin spice latte?”
“Are you kidding? I’ve been mainlining those puppies for weeks. Come on.”
They got into the car, Lacey stowing her bag of personal belongings on the back seat.
“Thanks for the new clothes. I really appreciate you ordering them for me,” Lacey said.
Jenna had bought a few things for Lacey from one of the prison-approved clothing catalogues, wanting Lacey to feel confident on her first day out in the world.
“You’ve got clothes and things at your brother’s place, right?” Jenna asked as she reversed out of the parking spot.
Lacey’s gaze was fixed on the high prisons walls and it took her a moment to snap-to and respond. “Yeah. I think so. I didn’t think to ask.” She glanced down at herself. “I hope my winter coats still fit. I porked up a bit. Then again, maybe the extra layer of fat will keep me warm.”
Gaining weight in prison was a common complaint – prison food was notorious for being high in heavily processed carbs.
“Are there places you can pick up gear locally in Marietta, or should we try to find you a coat before we head down there?” Jenna asked.
The thought of the forecast snowstorm tickled at the back of her brain again, but she pushed it away. Making sure Lacey had the best possible start in her new life was more important than the echo of bad memories.
“Marietta’s not exactly a one-horse town,” Lacey said, giving her an amused look. “We have electricity and running water and everything.”
“I didn’t mean it like that. I’ve just never been there. It could be one of those places with nothing but feed stores and flannel shirts and men who chew tobacco and whittle.”
Lacey’s smile flashed again. “Careful, city girl. That hole you’re digging just keeps getting bigger and bigger.”
They continued to talk and joke about nothing much during the short drive to Starbucks, where Jenna ordered two venti pumpkin spice lattes before they hit the road.
It wasn’t until they were on the outskirts of Billings that it occurred to Jenna that Lacey might like to call her brother to let him know all was well and she was on her way. Grabbing her phone from the center console, she handed it to Lacey.
“Feel free to call your brother or anyone else if you like.”
Lacey stared at the phone for a beat before setting it back in the console.
“Thanks, but we’ll be there soon enough.”