Chapter 7 - Echoes in the Cell Block
Miles away, inside the sterile, fluorescent-lit concrete confines of the Davidson County Correctional Facility, inmate #84930 sat on the edge of a narrow steel bunk.
The cell was cold, smelling of industrial disinfectant and stale air. The television in the common dayroom droned in the background, broadcasting a local business segment celebrating the successful awarding of the Riverdale Suspension Bridge contract to Bradley Engineering.
Teresa stared at the tiny screen, watching her son's face appear alongside glowing praise from city officials. He looked confident, successful, and completely unreachable.
She reached into her pocket, pulling out a crumpled, greasy piece of paper—the very receipt from the hardware store where she had bought the locks she used to bar Amy inside the kitchen.
May you like
A guard tapped his baton against the iron bars of her cell. "Lights out, Bradley. Time to sleep."
Teresa didn't move. She stared into the dark corner of the cell, finally realizing the bitter truth of her own design: she had spent her entire life trying to rule over a kingdom, only to end up a prisoner in the ruins of her own greed.
