Page 22 of Fighting for Tawny

Hate replaced the lust in his eyes. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out.

“Get on the intercom and make the announcement.”

Stoltz sputtered with indignation, followed by a string of vile expletives aimed at her. The veins in his neck and temples popped and pulsed with his rage. As he struggled to breathe, Tawny thought he might drop dead from a heart attack. She remained a safe distance away in case he lost his self-control and attacked her.

After drawing several deep breaths, Stoltz regained his composure. He lifted the receiver from its cradle and hit the intercom button. “This is Warden Stoltz speaking. All normal activities may resume at this time.” He slammed down the phone and glared at Tawny.

She imagined the cheers from the women throughout the prison, but they couldn’t hear them from their isolated position in Stoltz’s office. At the murderous expression on his face, Tawny sought to placate him. “You did the right thing, Warden, to avoid further alienating the women. This couldn’t have gone on much longer without a full-scale rebellion.”

“Led by you?”

She shook her head. “No. Not by me. I want to start fire classes and earn my way out of here.”

His anger abated a little, though he regarded her with suspicion. “That’s good to hear. Now, get out of here.”

Whitcomb waited for her. “That was some magic you pulled off.”

Tawny waved an invisible wand. “Warden Stoltz was the magician. He wanted to prove my lawyer was a fraud, so he allowed me to call her. He proved otherwise. It may not seem like it, but my lawyer has powerful connections, like the director of the DOC, for one.”

“No kidding. Well, no one’s gonna mess with you, then, Ginger.”

“My concern is for the inmates who were being unfairly punished.”

“Touching.”

He escorted her to the common room where she found Yolanda and Jo. They rushed toward her.

“T, you okay?’ Yolanda asked. “Old Stoltz sounded madder than a hornet on the loudspeaker.”

“Yeah, he did not want to do that.”

“So, what did you say to him to change his mind?”

“I called my lawyer, and she called the DOC.”

“Man, that took guts. Now what? Are we still goin’ to fire school?” For the first time since Tawny told her that she’d arranged a spot for her, Yolanda sounded excited about it.

“Oh, yeah. Stoltz wouldn’t dare rescind his offer. He doesn’t want to tangle with my lawyer. Plus, the director of the DOC will be here tomorrow in the morning. So spread the word. Everyone needs to be on her best behavior. And if he asks you anything, anything at all, you tell the truth. Got it?”

Yolanda and Jo nodded, and they split up to spread the news.

Later, in her cell, Tawny recorded the latest events and expressed her concern that she was drawing too much attention to herself. It was an innocuous reflection with a huge underlying meaning that no casual reader could interpret beyond the literal. Tawny wondered if Director Jerry Dickinson had any inkling of the true nature of the situation here at CIFW. In her journal, though, she wrote, Maybe things will improve after the director’s visit…

Tawny stopped writing mid-thought when a shadow fell over her journal. She glanced up and met the ramrod-straight figure of Grandma Mo, with whom she’d never spoken. She waited for the older woman to address her.

“It’s not wise to kick the hornet’s nest.”

Tawny shrugged. “It’s unintentional. You’re a lifer, right? No chance of parole? Why is it, then, that you’ve turned a blind eye to what’s happening in here?”

“And what do you think is happening?”

“Sexual abuse. Drug overdoses. Intimidation.”

Grandma Mo’s pale blue eyes narrowed speculatively behind a cheap pair of silver-framed glasses. “You don’t belong in here. And whatever change you’re hoping to effect won’t last after you’re gone. What’s worse is the hope you’re raising in these women that will be ripped away from them when you leave. Nothing will be left but their empty hearts.”

Tawny had nothing to say to that. She couldn’t erase the mistakes they’d made to land themselves in prison. But she could help Jo and Yolanda get released if they were victims of a conspiracy. And she could get justice for Lucy.

Grandma Mo pointed a bony finger at Tawny before she shuffled down the cell block.

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