Chapter Nineteen
The Hottest Bad Decision
Sammy
“Lockdown.” I repeated, my tone surely as dry as my expression.
“Yes, ma’am.” Thedeputy at the front desk bobbed his head.
“How– Why would a jail go on lockdown? It’s a jail. Is it not locked all the time?”
He let out a peel of laughter and returned to obnoxiously chomping his gum.
“That’s cute. That’s really cute. Yeah, things are always secure here. Sometimes, however, a situation will arise that requires us to move to a more controlled phase for a short time.” He sounded like he was about to mansplain his way to the moon.
I held up a hand to stop him and closed my eyes.
“What time will the phase move on?”
“Time? Uh–” He looked around, as if confused.
“After lunch? End of the business day? When can I come back and see him?” I hadn’t even gotten to offer Lennox’ name. I walked up to the visiting desk and was given a “Lockdown until further notice, Ma’am,” in place of a greeting.
“Oh. No, ma’am. It might be today, might be tomorrow, could even be next week.”
I squinted and looked around the room like I expected someone to tell me he was joking. I’d normally have been a little more understanding, but the walk had me hurting and my patience was short.
“Great.” I mumbled, before moving toward the door.
I didn’t realize how upset I was until I flung the door open and took off almost at a trot. The air felt good on my face. It kept the tears at bay, but I could feel them stinging at my eyes.
“Sam— Sammy Jo,” a voice called, growing louder as it did so.
I turned at the corner and Maelyn rolled to a stop in front of me.
“Get in, honey,” she called, taking one look at my face.
I sucked in a breath and let it out on a sob. Even if I wanted to refuse, I couldn’t stand in the street like this. I hurried to her passenger seat and sank down just as I lost the battle with my tears.
“Sammy, what's wrong?” she quietly asked as she steered the car down the street and pulled off into a gas station parking lot.
“I just– I just wanted to see him. I wanted him to see me. I just— wanted to see what all of this was.” I sobbed. “I don’t know what the fuck I wanted. Just… a few minutes of normal.”
Maelyn remained quiet and rubbed my shoulders.
“I don’t mean to be insensitive, friend, but– I don’t think a visiting room at the county jail is going to provide you with much normal. I could be wrong, but– Maybe collect yourself a little and rest, before you see him?”
“I can’t see him.” I exhaled and my chest suddenly felt less tense with her hugging on me. “They won’t let me. Lockdown.”
I shrugged like everyone but me knew exactly what that meant.
“Oh.” She nodded. “Well– I’m sure he would have loved to see you. You look beautiful.”
I laughed and wiped at my tears, giving a soft shake of my head. “I feel like hell.”
“Oh, Sammy.” She sympathetically huffed.
We sat in silence for a brief moment before she made a clicking sound with her mouth, “I got this.”
“Huh?” I looked over, as she shifted the car into drive and rolled us back onto the road.
“You can’t see him… But he can see you. I meant to give you a session as a coming home gift anyhow, and you already have your hair done. We’ll touch up your make-up and I’ll make magic happen!”
She crossed town and pulled up in front of a small but attractive storefront. Painted on the glass front, blocking out the public’s view of the window was, Bold Boudoir by Maelyn.
I cackled, unable to help it.
“I can’t send him that.”
“Why not?” She side-eyed me. “You were out to impress, look at you…”
I opened my mouth to object, but I was wearing my small pumps and tight jeans less than two weeks out of surgery.
“It’s a county jail. You can’t send naked pictures to the county jail.” I paused to think on that a moment, having never attempted or inquired about such a thing. “Can you?”
She laughed and abruptly covered her mouth when I seemed a little too curious. “I don’t know, but we’re not going to find out. We’re not sending money shots. It’s just like… burlesque but with photography. They’re demure, not obscene.”
“Oh.” I nodded. “I see.”
I didn’t, and my subtle frown must have said so.
“Come on,” She tapped my arm and swung her door open.
I followed her inside and couldn’t help but smile. The place was beautiful. She had wingback, vintage style furniture. Some of it looked like it came out of a high fantasy brothel, and there were so many mirrors.
“So, I was thinking…” She started, to say, only to pause when she realized my attention was still circling the room. “Over here, crazy.”
She came over and grabbed my hand, leading me to a rack of what seemed like Halloween costumes at first glance. There were boas of every color, sequined things, and netted items.
“Oh, my—” I held out a long sleeve of fishnet that connected to a ripped-up shirt.
“I have stuff for every flavor. What color are your underwear?”
“What?” I snapped, bewildered by her question.
She tried not to laugh but couldn’t contain her smile as I bared my lace clad hip. I was wearing black-lace boy shorts. I couldn’t take anything strappy on that side yet. The bruising was gone, but it was still sensitive.
“I don’t want him to see my scars.” I started laying down boundaries.
“Trust me.” Maelyn smiled, “He won’t see them.”
I put the netted-sleeved shirt on and found a babydoll black and pleated skirt.
“Oh.” She ran into her office and came back with the fanciest gothic boots I’d ever seen. “They’re a little snug, but you were always a half-size smaller than me. So, they might fit you perfectly.” She crossed her fingers while I shoved my foot into them and nodded.
“Great, now waita sec,” She ran back into her office and came out with a boutique bag. “These are the stockings I bought to go with them. I barely got my foot in them, though, so I couldn’t wear them.”
One came to my upper thigh, the other stopped just above the knee, but had an inch of fishnet trim before the band. I hadn’t ever gone through a gothic or emo phase as a kid, but I always admired the high fashion version of such styles. Maelyn did not disappoint. She had me squat, popping, and posing all over the studio.
“Great, now… I’m going to do my magic, ready?”
“We didn’t do magic yet?” I looked back at the mirror I'd just been grabbing my ankles in front of.
“No,” she swiftly denied. “The magic is what I put into the picture. It’s a computer image, or transplanted image. I have this wall back here with the brick, and I always thought it looked like an old parking-garage wall… I was thinking we could put you over this…” she went over and began to nudge one of her odd-shaped wedges toward the brick. “I can go back later on my computer, take out the wedge and put a motorcycle with you instead.”
“Get the fuck out,” I grinned.
“It’s true.”
I leaned back on the wedge, and she instructed me to raise and drape my arm just so, as if I were grabbing some pretend handlebar.
“Now bring one leg up, like its resting on a– Yeah, like that.” Maelyn coached and snapped her pictures. “Aight, one more.”
She was all smiles as she helped me to my feet, spun me around and knocked my ankles apart.
“What the hell?” I spat, grabbing wildly for the wedge.
“Yeeeah.” She stretched the word, causing me to look back at her all scandalized.
That bitch snapped the picture, too!
My jaw dropped and I whirled on her, grabbing my side.
“You just flashed my whole ass to the camera!” I laughed, still stunned by the encounter.
“Are you okay?”
“Wha–? Yeah, I’m okay. I’m fucking mortified. I can’t send him that!”
She looked down at the camera and then up at me before slowly turning it. My ass would never be defined as wide, but damned if her maneuvering hadn’t produced a nice little bubble.
“How the fuck did you manage that illusion?” I asked, moving back to the mirror and trying to recreate the look for myself.
She snorted and stole her camera back, before I had a chance to drop it.
“Bitch, I’m serious. Do you see my ass in that picture? I ain’t got no ass like that.”
Maelyn was cackling. “You do in them boots. They’re yours. Wear them on the visiting day when lockdown is over. You can pick these up then and take them up there.”
“You have lost your ever-loving mind. I am not about to personally take my ass up there with those things in hand!”
Maelyn had tears by the time I was done protesting and her laughter turned to short howls, “So, your boyfriend is in there for attempted murder, but you’re afraid of a little hand to hand, is that what you’re tellin’ me?”
I instantly sobered, which only sent her deeper into her giggle fits. “Stop. Stop it, your face.”
“Fuck you!” I spat out before laughing with her.
It felt good to spend the day with her.
We stopped for pizza on the way home. I’d been so lost in our laughter and conversation when we arrived, that I hadn’t realized where we were until we walked out, and I was confronted with the row of bikes.
“Jesus.” I hurried toward her car. “Come on.”
“What?” She ran toward the car and hopped in.
“Why didn’t you tell me this place was across from the Dirty Savage’s club house? What if my dad would have showed up?”
“What do you–? Are you still not talking to him?” Her eyes bugged.
I groaned and rubbed my face.
“Just get us out of here, okay,” I whispered.
She cleared her throat and started the ignition, offering me a soft, apologetic smile as we turned onto the boulevard.
“Sorry,” she whispered, pulling up in front of my house.
“No worries. You didn’t know any better.” I reached around her neck and drew her in for a hug. “Thanks for everything. I needed today!”
She squeezed me back and kissed my cheek.
“I missed you. I’m glad to see you relaxing and fitting back in.”
I nodded. “I’m getting there. Day by day.”
“Well, tomorrow swing by. You can come get your pictures… then get your man.”
I rolled my eyes and grinned as I climbed out.
I slept better than I had in ages, and true to her word, Maelyn had the pictures ready bright and early. She even brought them over, so I didn’t have to walk.
“You – have– to see these.”
“Oh, God. I don’t want to see them.” I reached out and blocked her from sliding them completely out of the package.
“Yeah. Definitely, don’t want to see any more.” I laughed when the rounded part of my hip and the tail end of a fat, lime-green motorcycle flashed from what I could see. “I’ll chicken out. I won’t send ‘em.”
I knew I wouldn’t. I was already reconsidering. “Just, put them in the mail for me… at the post office?”
She eagerly nodded and I found a big yellow envelope and started scribbling on the front of it.