Stephanie Grace Whitson - [Quilt Chronicles] by Key on the Quilt Read Free Book Online Page A

track of an inmate?
    In spite of Miss Dawson’s reassurance, Ellen’s doubts grew with every step toward home. Ah, well. Two guards and the doctor would surely be able to handle any trouble. She rubbed her arms to rid them of the goose bumps prickling her skin.
    Georgia spoke up. “It was the right thing to do. There’s two guards coming along. What could happen?”

    Jane had done her share of pressing her cheek against the tall, narrow dormitory windows to watch the warden’s house go up across the road. After all, other than the magazines people brought to “encourage the women,” the warden’s house was the only piece of “normal life” any of them had had a chance to encounter since entering the prison. Oh, a committee of women came out on Sundays, but something about them made Jane uncomfortable. For one thing, a couple of them seemed more interested in eyeing the more attractive guards, like Adam Selleck, than in worshipping or encouraging the inmates.
    Thanks to Owen, Jane knew not to take smiles at face value. Thanks to Aunt Flora’s betrayal, she was wary of any supposed kindness, and she wondered what price she would pay for Miss Dawson’s apparent good opinion of her and the warden’s apparent good opinion of Miss Dawson’s opinion. The possibilities—in light of Max’s role in today’s events—made her tremble.
    Momentarily blinded by the sun, Jane stumbled on the top stair just outside the front door. If Max hadn’t grabbed her arm, she would have fallen headlong down the entire flight of stairs. When she flinched, he let go.
    “Are you all right, Ja—?” He broke off, swallowing the last part of her name.
    Jane glanced at the guard to see if he’d heard Max almost call her by name. His face revealed nothing, but then he was like that. Jane stayed as far away from both him and Adam Selleck as possible. She couldn’t quite say why, but none of the women on the ward seemed to like either man, and she was no exception.
    “It’s bright out here,” she said. “We don’t get outside. I’m fine.” Which was a lie. She wasn’t fine at all, but Max wasn’t the reason at the moment. Her eyes swept the horizon. There was too much sky. Too much… everything. The enormity of the landscape frightened her.
    Again, the question surfaced.
What’s happened to me?
Her heartbeat ratcheted up with every step away from the penitentiary. She, who had always loved to stand outside as the sun set, taking joy in the unbroken view all the way to the horizon—she couldn’t bear the thought of all this… space. She felt almost dizzy. To steady herself, she reached for Vestal’s hand and forced a smile. “Feeling better?”
    Vestal swiped at her lips and croaked assent. “Pains have eased some.”
    Max spoke up. “I’ll see that you get a drink of water as soon as we get inside.” Jane sensed rather than saw him look her way. “A drink of water for both of you. It’ll help calm your nerves.”
    Jane glanced up at him, then quickly looked away. She wished she hadn’t come. Returning to what everyone called “the castle” couldn’t happen too soon as far as she was concerned. She’d told Max she wouldn’t see him if he came to visit, and she hadn’t changed her mind. Why was he here? What made him think she would change her mind? If Vestal ended up being transported to Lincoln, she was just going to have to handle that part of it on her own. Jane would find a way to hold herself together for a few hours, but it was going to take everything she had.
    She wondered at the near-panic she was feeling over being outside. What would she do when she was finally released? If she felt this way now, what would it be like after a few more years? Drawing inside herself had seemed like the only way to survive. But now, with her heart racing and perspiration crawling down the back of her neck, she wondered. Had the cocoon been a bad idea?

    Once they got to the house, the guards kept Vestal out on the porch