The prison area was fenced six feet high with electric barbed wire all around the huge parcel of land. There was pin drop silence all around the neighborhood which made me feel like we were entering the devil’s study room. My eyes were focused on the front gate which was past the field where many men stood outside, staring at us while murmuring to each other. I drove to the front gate where manned guards stood with huge firearms around their torsos, their fingers ready on the trigger. A tall slender man approached me on the driver’s side, requesting for our identification and purpose of visit. After a long process of security checks and document verification, we were let inside.The field was bigger from the inside than it seemed outside. We parked next to the main block. I had taken three days to assure myself that I needed to do this now, but as we parked outside, all I wanted was to turn around and go back home. I sat there silently; my mind froze from the world outside my body.
The two doors opened simultaneously and Noah Benjamin limped out into the hall. The orange jumpsuit he wore was baggy around his frame and his face was time-worn, cutting him out to be a man of the age. His grey-white hair was wizened and straw-like, and his beard was patched up around his face, almost covering his entire skin. From afar, his eyes appeared sad and worn, but I could tell they lit up when he saw eyes as he neared. He tried fastening his pace towards Lucas, but his unsteady feet could not let him hurry.“Lu- cas,” he called out as the guard behind him helped him to his chair. I was rooted to my seat, still holding Lucas’s hand for support. His eyes were lasered on Lucas whose face seemed totally disinterested in whatever the old man had to say.“Lucas, my son. Is that you?” he called out again. His voice was weak and rough, and he seemed to be using the remaining energy in his bones to call out for his son. Lucas still did not respond.“I never thought I would ever see
Lucas had bottled up all his wrath until the moment he heard Charlotte’s voice, calling out for Noah. He turned his head swiftly towards her, stunned by her interference in their direct family matters. This was a thing that Lucas felt he had to do alone, and now that the control was off his hands, he was unsure of what to expect.“What is wrong with you, Charlotte?” Lucas asked her, pulling her down to her seat. She was reluctant to go back down.“Noah, wait, this can’t end like this,” Charlotte said, her focus directed entirely on Noah and not the man who was currently tugging at her arm. The guard was about to walk him back to the seat but Noah resisted. He remained rooted to the floor.“Noah! We came here to tell you that you didn’t have to die sad and guilty anymore. Lucas came here to let you know that as much as you hurt him, he did not want you to carry the weight of your sins to the grave. It’s the first reunion in decades, it was definitely meant to be difficult. But it was n
The wedding setup looked as beautiful as the Heavens were imagined to look. The aisle divided the white seats into half, leading up to the altar that overlooked the Chattahoochee River. The sun had just risen, covering the surface of the water with its orange rays, as if contributing to the wedding theme.At the front, the couple’s family had designated seats and the planner had even left a seat for Aunt May as per Jenny’s wishes. The peach and white flower arrangements were placed along the sides of the aisle creating a romantic and lush aisleway from the entrance all the way to the altar.White florals and pampas grass had been used to create a modern eclectic boho feeling that was highlighted by the rustic wedding arch at the altar. From the sight of the venue, it was clear to see Aunt May’s presence around them, and their influence on their lives. Rita had gone out to inspect the venue for the umpteenth time in a bid to calm Jenny’s anxiety down which left her running around and
“Did you all think that I was going to let you off so easily, huh?” Vivian shouted from behind. The crowd gaped in surprise as they watched her stagger to the front, knocking down some of the arrangements that had been placed symmetrically on the ground. She was clearly drunk. “You and your family came to ruin my life and you think you can escape that easily!” Vivian laughed out loud, devilishly. “No, honey! You got it all wrong! Vivian Kent never accepts defeat.” Lucas stomped over to meet her in the middle of the aisle and with all his strength, he pulled her back all the way to the end. She was screaming and wincing in pain, demanding him to get his hands off her. Lucas was not about to do that. “Let me go, Lucas! I will not tell you again!” she shouted loudly. Before she could utter another word, a louder roar was heard from the left side of the audience. It was Terrence. Jenny had invited him for the wedding, and as a form of respect, he had taken the first plane to Atlanta to
Charlotte drove into the parking garage of her office building with a smile on her face. It had not been officially announced yet, but she had a hunch that today she was going to get the promotion she had always dreamed of - being Editor-In-Chief at Kerrington Publishers. The beat-up Toyota Camry she had inherited from her mother spurt out exhaustion fumes as she came to a stop, but this time, unlike all the other times it had done this, she did not grind her teeth in frustration. Nothing was going to get her moods down today. If all went as well as she had imagined, she was going to have a more prestigious job, with a hell lot more money. God knows she had worked hard enough to deserve a better lifestyle. She stepped out of the car, her black sandal heels hitting the ground first, and then her hour-glass figure which fit perfectly in the red pencil dress that she bought specifically for this occasion, emerged. Charlotte knew she looked stunning enough to turn a few heads, and her
It had been two months since the closure of Kerrington Publishers Company. I woke up, almost kicking my laptop off the bed. My days had been filled with sending job applications to different publishing companies, but to no avail. For some unexplainable reason, my heart was beating so fast as if I had just finished a marathon. The only marathon I was doing was editing my cover letters, which would lead me to run all through the night to early mornings. I tried slowing down my breathing, and when I was calmer, I steadied myself on the edge of the bed and turned to look at the other side of the bed. Terrence was missing. I propped myself up and took steady steps to the bathroom which was dry and empty. Looking at the alarm clock that seemed desolate on the bedside drawer, I noticed that it was ten minutes to noon. Surely, I had slept all morning, and it made sense why Terrence would be missing as he had an important meeting today morning. Dancing to the small breeze on the bedside table
I could hear Aunt May talking but my head was in a whole other space. After Kerrington’s call, I spent most of the time searching online for cheap accommodation in New York, but apparently, the cheapest room cost the equivalent of the total money I had in my bank account at the moment. This meant that I would have catered for my living expenses without considering transport and food. If only I could… As much as I tried pleading with the hoteliers on call, there was no other option for me but the very one that I was trying to avoid. Which led me to Aunt May’s house. *** Aunt May, Lucas’s grandmother, had taken care of him since he was a child. After his parents separated, the child custody appeal had been finalized granting Aunt May full custody of Lucas until he was sixteen. This protected him from his professional drunk of a father and his poor mother, who then ran off to New York to get a job, promising to come back for Lucas. Twenty-four years ago, when they moved down the st