Breaking into Prison

by Mairsile Leabhair

  “How does any girl become a woman?”

  “Oh. Ohhh. Okay, continue please.”

  Annie smiled and continued. “The awkward girl was also disappointed that the beautiful princess deemed her unworthy and kept walking. She knew she was undeserving with her tattered clothes and gangly legs, but all she wanted was a chance to present herself. Then one day a troll made his presence known to the princess. He reared his ugly head and shouted to the heavens that all who would oppose him would be left bloodied and bruised. The princess was in danger. Gallantly, the young squire stood between her and the troll.”

  “Oh, my,” Trudie said, sipping on her soup.

  “Oh, yes. The troll scoffed at the shy girl who dared challenge him. But what he couldn’t know was that she had come prepared to do battle. A steel-toed boot to the troll’s shin brought him down, and a right cross to his chin, knocked him into the abyss. The princess was saved and was very grateful.”

  “How grateful?” Trudie asked, as she set the cup down and laid back.

  “She rewarded her brave squire with a kiss. A kiss that magically transported them to the princess’s bedchambers. Seemingly floating on a white puffy cloud, the princess lifted the girl up onto an orgasmic plane such as she had never known before. Sprites fluttered about her head singing jubilantly. Pixies blew on small musical horns as they danced from below, while elves flittered above, tossing bright colored illuminations into the air. The end.”

  “Wow, I love the way you tell a story,” Trudie said, tucking her hands under the pillow to cradle her face.

  “Thank you. My mother loved to read romantic fairy tales and when she was sick, I would read them to her. Now close your eyes and get some sleep.”

  Trudie didn’t need much encouragement and was already half-asleep when she said, “And dream that I’m the princess and you’re my knight in shining armor.”

  Annie’s eyes glistened. I only wish.

  Chapter Eight

  Annie woke to find a blanket over her head. She pulled it off and saw a bathrobe flying toward her. Trudie was disrobing. Annie bounded out of the chair by the bedside and grabbed Trudie’s hands before she could unbutton her pajama top. “Trudie, what are you doing?” she asked as she sat down beside her.

  “It’s so hot in here,” Trudie protested.

  “Thank God.” Annie put her fingers to Trudie’s cheeks, and then felt her moist forehead. “I think your temperature has finally broken.”

  “I had the strangest dream about castles and elves, and someone was having sex on a cloud.”

  “That is strange,” Annie smirked. “But you’re on some strong meds, so I wouldn’t worry about it.”

  “But you were there, on a horse, with your sword drawn high. That part was actually nice.”

  “Oh, well, that part wasn’t strange at all.”

  “I didn’t think so either,” Trudie replied thickly.

  Annie swallowed hard. She looked at her watch to distract herself. “It’s too soon for your medicine, so why don’t you lie back and finish that dream? I’m dying to know how it turns out.”

  “I can’t. I’ve been sweating like a pig and the sheets are all icky.”

  “Okay, how about a nice warm bath while I change the sheets?”

  Trudie’s eyes welled up, which caused her nose to run. “Why are you so nice to me?” she whispered.

  “Because you make it so easy,” Annie replied, taking a tissue and covering Trudie’s nose. “Blow.”

  Trudie did as instructed, even though it surprised her that she had no qualms of doing something that just yesterday she would have refused to do, for fear of looking bad in front of Annie.

  “That’s my good girl,” Annie praised. She looked at the mucus and smiled.

  Trudie cringed. “Ew. How can you smile at that?”

  “Because it’s clear, no sign of blood,” Annie replied, tossing the tissue into the trash and then standing up. “Let me run you a bath. I’ll be right back.”

  Trudie watched her walk out of the room, and tears welled up in her eyes. “Did you send her to me, Leigh?”

  A few minutes later, Annie came back to find Trudie sitting up in bed, her legs dangling over the side. “Can you walk to the bathroom?”

  “Oh, I’m sure I can,” Trudie replied, standing up on wobbly legs.

  Annie was by her side and offered her arm to hold on to. “Remember, you’re taking some heavy meds so I think it would be best if I wait right outside the bathroom door, in case you need me. I wouldn’t want you falling asleep in the tub.”

  “You know what, Annie. You’ve seen my butt, my snot, and my tears. I think at this point, I can trust you to see me naked. But I warn you, it’s not going to be pretty.”

  “I find that hard to believe,” Annie replied. “It’s the heart inside a woman that I find beautiful, not the outside covering.”

  “Do you use that line often?”

  “Nope, first time.”

  “Oh. Um, it’s very nice, thank you.”

  Annie shook her head. “I didn’t say I was talking about your heart.”

  Trudie laughed until she coughed. “Touché.” I can’t believe I just offered to be naked in front of her. It must be the drugs. Yeah, I’ll blame them.

  Pointing to her bureau, Trudie asked, “Would you get me a fresh pair of pajamas please? Second drawer on the right side.”

  “Oh, do I get to peek into your undie drawers?”

  “In your dreams, nursey-nurse,” Trudie retorted with a smile.

  Annie opened the drawer, surprised to see that it was full of pajamas. Who has that many PJs?

  Holding onto Annie’s arm, they walked into the bathroom and shut the door. The room was full of steam, and Annie encouraged Trudie to breathe in as deep as she could. Trudie’s cough was better, and her breathing, while it still wheezed, was deeper than before. Trudie began unbuttoning her pajama top, while Annie pulled a washcloth and a towel from the cabinet.

  It was a large bathroom, with a glass-encased shower next to a ceramic-white sunken bathtub, a small bench set in front of the makeup table, with a large hand-held, sliver-plated mirror sitting on the counter in front of the wall-to-wall mirror. The cat had slipped past them as they came in and jumped up on the large wicker basket, proceeding to take her own bath.

  “Trudie,” Annie said quietly.

  “Hm?”

  Annie stopped Trudie before she unbuttoned the last button. The one that kept her breasts covered. “I can’t believe that I’m going to say this, but I really need to wait outside the door. I would feel like I’m taking advantage of you while you’re so vulnerable, and that’s just not who I am.”

  Trudie looked up at her in wonderment. All that and scruples too. I am falling hard for you, Annie Nichols. She had handed it to Annie on a silver platter, and Annie turned her down. Not that anything would have happened, because Trudie just did not feel well. But there was no denying that Annie’s convictions were honorable.

  “My therapist, Kelly, would think you’re crazy,” Trudie said with a laugh.

  “Trust me. When you’re better, it will be a different story, I assure you,” Annie said, and walked out the door.

  Smiling, Trudie thought, I’m counting on it.

  Annie sat down in the hallway in front of the closed bathroom door and smiled when she heard Trudie calling to her.

  “I’m getting into the tub now. I’m splashing water so you can hear that I’m in the tub now.”

  Annie laughed and shook her head. Then she heard Trudie coughing, and she looked at her watch. As soon as she was done with her bath, it would be close enough for her to take her medicine again.

  “I’m bathing under my armpits now.”

  Annie grinned and said, “Don’t forget behind your ears.”

  “Okay, I’m bathing my stomach now.”

  Annie suddenly realized that Trudie may give her a complete inventory, and Annie was a very visual person. Don’t say it. Don’t say it. “J
ust let me know when you’re finished, okay? No need for color commentary.” She heard Trudie laughing.

  “Okay, so, let’s talk about what you like,” Trudie suggested.

  “What I like?”

  “Yes. I know you like dogs or Lucy would have eaten you. What about cats?”

  “Yep, love cats, too. Except the bald ones. That’s just wrong. By the way, how did you come to name a female cat Bruno?”

  “Leigh named her that because as a kitten, Bruno looked more like a bull dog.”

  “Oh, yeah, I can see that now.”

  “What about foods?” Trudie asked. “Do you like kielbasa, or black-eyed peas, or spinach?” Trudie questioned randomly.

  “No. No, and really no,” Annie grimaced. “What about you? Do you like hot dogs, hot peppers, or beef jerky?”

  “Ew, no to all three.”

  “Summer, winter, spring, or fall?” Annie questioned.

  “Winter. Sometimes I turn off the heater, put on my parka and open the freezer just so I could feel like I was outside.”

  Annie’s heart melted. Someday you will be outside, with me. “Okay, what about hiking, bike riding, or — oh shit. I’m sorry about that.” Annie shook her head. Damn, me and my big mouth.

  A few moments later, Trudie opened the door and a puff of steam bellowed out. “Yes, I love the outdoors,” she replied.

  “Are you all right?” Annie asked, jumping to her feet.

  “Much better now, thank you.”

  “Do you want to go back to bed, or try and eat some more soup?”

  “None of the above. I’d like to curl up on the couch for a while.” With you.

  “Sure. Go make yourself comfortable, and I’ll get your pillows.” Annie went into Trudie’s bedroom and turned the humidifier off, then grabbed the pillows from her bed, her robe and a blanket. When she came back into the living room, Trudie was standing by the floor to ceiling windows, silhouetted in the moon’s glow. Annie stood there, mesmerized by the moonbeam’s glow on Trudie’s raven hair, shimmering in silver. How the glow softened her features and followed her curves. How it made an angel look like she was descending from heaven.

  “Hello? Earth to Annie.”

  “What? Oh, sorry.” Annie laid the pillows down at one end of Trudie’s favorite couch and waited for her to sit down. “It’s almost time for your medicine, so let me tuck you in, and—”

  “My cough is better now. Can’t we postpone the cough syrup for a little while? I feel like Snow White and the cough syrup is the poisoned apple.”

  “More like Sleeping Beauty, but I get what you’re saying. The cough syrup is the reason your cough is better, but all right, just for a little while. But you absolutely have to take your antibiotics.”

  “Yes, Nurse Ratchet,” Trudie said with a smile.

  Annie walked into the kitchen and retrieved the medicine and a water from the fridge. Is it wrong that I am loving this with Trudie so sick?

  “Will you tell me another story?” Trudie asked, when Annie walked back over to her.

  “How about you tell me one this time?” Annie asked, as she handed Trudie her medicine and the water bottle.

  “I don’t know any stories.”

  “You’re a writer, you know tons of stories.”

  “Not like yours,” Trudie protested.

  It was part curiosity, and a tinge of jealousy, that led Annie to ask, “Tell me about Leigh. What was she like?”

  “Oh. Well. She was my soulmate.”

  “How so?”

  Trudie swallowed her pills, and set the bottle down. “Because she completed me. Have you not met your soulmate yet, Annie?”

  “No, not yet. How did you know Leigh was your soulmate?”

  “Leigh was a very strong person, with a gentleness that came naturally. She loved being outdoors, loved seeing new places, having new adventures, and I loved seeing the world through her eyes. We first met at a book signing for my second book, and by my third book, we were inseparable. I had a strenuous press junket because of the movie, and Leigh, without discussing it with me first, began discharge proceedings so she could travel with me. She didn’t get completely out though; she went into the reserves.”

  “She was a Tech Sergeant, right?”

  Trudie nodded. “Yes, and a very good one, too. I have always regretted her decision to leave the service because of me.”

  “Are you saying that you wouldn’t give up writing for Leigh?”

  “I tried to, but she wouldn’t have it. It was the only thing that we ever argued about.”

  “I think I can understand what Leigh’s motivation was.”

  “Maybe you could explain it to me, because I still don’t understand it,” Trudie said.

  “We have a motto on the flight deck – uno ab alto – one over all. I think, for Leigh, you became the one over everything else.”

  “What a nice way to put it. But I still don’t understand why she would give up her career for mine.”

  Annie shook her head. “She didn’t give it up completely. In the reserves you can be called back to active duty at any time for almost any reason. Perhaps she planned to re-enlist after your book signing tour. I’m also in the reserves, and if it weren’t for the fact that I can make more money as a temp security guard and doing maintenance for Uncle Donny, then I would go back in the service full time.”

  “Three jobs? You need the money that badly?” Trudie asked.

  “Yes.”

  Why would she need a lot of money? Gambling, drugs? I don’t feel right in asking her. Trudie had a sudden coughing spell that propelled her upright.

  “Time for some more cough syrup,” Annie announced, and went into the kitchen for the bottle and a spoon.

  Trudie was still coughing when Annie sat down beside her. Pouring the thick liquid into the spoon, she waited until Trudie’s episode passed.

  “I hate this,” Trudie announced, blowing her nose.

  “Don’t think about it. Tell me, where did you and Leigh like to go, just to be outside for a while?” Annie asked, distracting her as she slid the spoon into Trudie’s mouth.

  Trudie swallowed and smiled. “We’d walk down by the river and wave at the tug boats floating by. Of course that was before my face was plastered all over social media.”

  “Was Leigh from Arkansas?”

  “No, Texas.”

  “Aw, that explains the cowboy hat and boots I saw her wearing in the video.”

  Trudie laughed. “Yes, she loved the whole cowgirl, calf-roping, hay-baling, horse riding culture and I loved nothing more than to watch her be a cowgirl. Her folks owned a ranch north of Dallas, and we would visit them a couple a times a year. The second Leigh stepped off the plane, her whole physicality changed. Um, do you like horse riding?”

  “I don’t know. I’ve never been on a horse before.”

  Trudie thought for a moment. “What do you like to do for fun, Annie?”

  “Nothing special. To relax I like to hike the Ouachita Trail or go kayaking on the Buffalo River. When I can’t sleep I shoot pool down at the pub. I love music, going to the movies, playing video games, and eating Chinese takeout. Stuff like that.”

  Trudie tried to stifle a yawn. “Do you like to travel? To try new, different things, like food, clothes, ride a camel?” I am sitting here, totally interviewing her. This is so wrong.

  “Except for the two tours in Afghanistan, I’ve never been out of Little Rock. But I loved trying the food over there, like mantu and qorma, and I did actually ride a camel while I was there. Not as comfortable as you would think.”

  This is so right. “I agree. I rode a camel in Egypt. I couldn’t walk for a week.” Trudie laid her head on the pillow. “Never again,” she said, just before she fell asleep.

  “Oh, I don’t know,” Annie whispered. “I think I might ride one again if you asked me to.” She got up and pulled the blanket over Trudie’s shoulders, looking down at her with a longing that ached in her heart. What are you doing
to me, Trudie Youngblood? And why do I want it so bad?

  Annie walked over to the entertainment center and selected a CD from the stack on top of the player. Checking that the volume was low, she hit play. As the soulful, haunting sounds of Adele filled the air, Annie went back to her seat and picked up her book. She was reading the last book Trudie wrote, Breaking into Prison, and transposed herself and Trudie as the main characters. Toward the end of the book, Annie was surprised that the character she thought of as Trudie was killed violently. Tears filled her eyes, spilling over onto the book, as Annie lived in that moment when Trudie’s character collapsed into her arms. She felt the real pain, the agony of begging Trudie not to leave her. She couldn’t read any further and snapped the book shut.

  Trudie stirred at the noise. She smacked her lips softly, the dimples in her cheeks growing deeper, and then disappearing again. She tucked her hand up under her chin and began to snore softly.

  Annie cried for a long time as she sat there, watching Trudie sleep. Why am I crying? That’s not going to happen to Trudie. She was crying for Leigh… so, why am I crying?

  Sometime in the night, Trudie woke up with an urgent need to go to the bathroom. On very shaky legs, she made her way down the hall, and into the bathroom where she pulled down her pants and sat down. No sooner had she sat down than Bruno rubbed against her legs, demanding to be scratched, which was fortuitous because Trudie was falling asleep on the toilet.

  Afterward, Trudie walked over to were Annie laid in the chair, her hand on the book that laid open across her chest, and her head turned to the side, her eyes closed in sleep.

  “What’s this?” Trudie whispered and leaned closer. A single tear had pooled in the corner of Annie’s eye, shimmering in the moonlight. Trudie reached out to wipe it away, but changed her mind. She didn’t want to wake her, and yet, she did. Instead, Trudie laid back down on the couch wondering why Annie had been crying.

  Chapter Nine

  “Trudie. Trudie, are you there?”

  Annie was in the bathroom, washing her hands, when she heard someone in the room next door. She knew no one else could be in the apartment other than herself and Trudie. Even if they had a key, they wouldn’t be able to get past the security bolts. She didn’t take time to dry her hands; she opened the bathroom door and rushed into Trudie’s office.