The metallic click of the handcuffs felt heavier than she had ever imagined— though she had never imagined it at all.She was always a bright student, morally upright, never broke a rule in her life. Well, unless the natural order of marriage counts— which brought her to where she was.Ivory's wrist throbbed as the officer yanked her out of the police van to the precinct. She caught the golden band in her finger, her mind reeling with a mix of disbelief, confusion and regret. Had she rejected this ring in the first place, would she be paying for crimes she didn't commit?The words still echoed in her ears: "You're under arrest for fraud, forgery and attempted murder."Her heart sank, clenching harder than the first time she heard those words. She could barely comprehend how Lori's crimes had been pinned on her. They were a doppelganger, but there were some differences between them... Like their hair. But in the picture on screen, there was no difference between them. Lori had her fu
They say fear is weakness, but in the trembling of our hands and the pounding of our hearts, we find the courage to rise.Right in front of her, her fate had been decided and she had no say in it.“We move her to Cadet Prison tomorrow.” Ivory’s life had flashed before her eyes when the words finally registered. She was going to prison?!For crimes she didn’t commit? How exactly so?The emotions within her had risen from fear to rage, then to fear again, then to despair.“I won’t accept this!” She cried, her voice laced with a mix of urgency and desperation. “I am innocent! My name is Ivory Hollis. I graduated top of my class in SNU, I’ve never tried forgery in my life!”“Quiet!” A police officer roared, “We are trying to do some paperwork here.”“Is that all you do? Paperwork and arresting the wrong people? I am innocent!”“I am innocent!” Ivory repeated the statement like a mantra, clinging onto it like they could save her, just like she had repeated ‘Damian loves me, he loves wo
Chapter 45For a moment, Ivory forgot to breathe. She forgot to blink, she forgot to move. She stood, stunned, shocked. Her eyes brimming with tears enough to form a river. With each passing second, Arlo's voice replayed like a broken record. The TV had long been paused but she was still standing, looking at-- the news crested in her memory."So..." Detective Good's voice echoed, pulling her back to reality. "What were you saying about Arlo Covelli?" Ivory opened her mouth but the words didn't form- they couldn't."We would add theft to your charges but... The Sovrano hasn't reported the case formally.""If you hit these metal bars one more time pleading false innocence, I will make sure you do not get to Cadet Prison alive." Detective Good turned and walked away, the sound of his receding footsteps fell on Ivory's ears weighing on her heart. The man was almost gone. He was almost out of sight when Ivory managed to gather her voice."Arlo!" She muttered. The detective stopped,
Chapter 46Willis felt as though the world had tilted and the person in front of him was no longer the Arlo he knew. He was no longer the man that had been his best friend for twenty-eight years. He was now a monster. A cold-hearted monster that was well on his way to doom and there was no going back.His gaze remained on him, unwavering, unrelenting, taking in his features. If he was sad, it didn’t show on his features. But was it possible that he wasn’t sad? Was it normal? To have betrayed a woman he was probably in love with and not feel anything. Did he regret it? Did he mean his words? Could he really not save Ivory? “What happened to you, man?“ Willis blurted out, his voice crashing into a sob. Arlo swallowed hard, fighting with every fiber in him to remain strong.“Don’t you feel anything for this girl?” Willis's low sobs continued, “She’s… she’s not guilty. I can help you. Together we can… we can free Ivory”“Don’t you owe her that much? You brought this on her, don’t you f
The black van, —you know the one that looks like a bullion van but for prisoners— came to a halt. The police officers hopped out, heavy on duty, loaded with gun. Ivory was still trying to accept her reality. She was still trying to accept that she had gone from being Ivory to being called ‘the suspect’.She was yet to accept the fact that Arlo had really said those words and sentenced her to death. This, to her, was death.She was slowly dying. Every passing moment was bringing her one step closer to her death.“Pick up the pace!” The officer’s voice bolted her out of her thoughts.She snapped up her gaze and came in contact with a familiar face. Ivory paused. Her heart leaped. I was wrong, she thought. He’d never betray me.Ivory’s adrenaline surged, picking up the pace as the officer had demanded. The cuffs in her hands and legs did not stop her. She was too happy to care. She stopped before Willis. Her eyes sparkling with both hope and relief. “What took you guys so long?!”
She didn’t die. She cried herself to sleep every night, woke up with headaches. Couldn’t find the appetite to eat the watery food served in prison. Her cell was too small, barely having any light, barely having any hope. She survived the first week of her time in prison, sought for death but didn’t die.She suffered long days of hard labor, panic attacks that seemed to stop her breathing for what seemed like eternity, aching heart, and everything in between, still she didn’t die.On the Friday of her second week in Cadet prison. Ivory had woken feeling exceptionally down, she couldn’t barely drag herself off the flat mattress.Her eyes refused to open after she blinked. Her body felt disjointed. It seemed her body had finally received the message that her mind had been sending. Ivory sighed weakly, accepting the death that seemed to be knocking on her door. “What a beautiful day to die,” she muttered under her breath as her body gave up.The prison warden tasked with supervising th
Five Years LaterIvory’s POVWhat is the difference between times past and time’s past?I personally do not know. I do not know. But I do know that it’s been five years. Five long years since I last saw life the gates of Cadet Prison.Since that incident—The incident that changed my life, the one that brought me in here but most importantly, the one that gave me my son.Standing outside the gates of Cadet Prison after all these years, the air tugging on my skin felt different, felt new. There really was something called a breath of freedom. You will never know what it means until you’re trapped, enslaved, or imprisoned.If you’re wondering what’s going on, if you’re curious to know why I’m standing out here and talking about freedom after only five years when I was supposed to do ten, then here’s a summary in three lines:A thief was caught in Gusan CountyIt turned out to be Lori Spencer.I am free! Mondays are now my favorite day of the week. It was on a Monday, that the u
Ivory’s POV My husband was working late again. He had been working late every day for the last six months.And some days he wouldn’t even come home. For every night I woke up alone, every business trip, and every impromptu weekend meeting, I repeated one line to myself like a mantra— “Damian loves working, and he loves me.” With that, I turned a blind eye to all his excuses, the ones that made sense and the ones that didn't. I endured them all. I never confronted him, never asked for more. It was another late night, and I thought to bring him some dinner. I shouldn’t have bothered. I should’ve stayed home, at least, I wouldn’t have to watch my husband thrust into another woman like a sex-starved wild animal. He seemed to be enjoying himself so much that he didn't notice me standing there, he didn't even care that he was fucking another woman with our wedding ring on his finger. Tears rushed to my eyes, blurring my sight. I wiped them away quickly and turned to walk away, but