The sound of my name being called broke me from my thoughts. I was sitting at the table picking over my breakfast because I couldn’t eat a thing. When I looked up, CO Sellers was standing over me with handcuffs.
“Time to go. Your lawyer is waiting.”
I stood and dumped my tray before holding out my hands to be cuffed. Sellers led me from the cell block, and we made our way to the room where Erica was waiting. When the door opened, she smiled at me.
“Good morning, Alayah,” she spoke.
“Good morning.”
“How are you feeling?”
I shrugged. “I’m here. I don’t have any hope of being released, but I’m willing to try.”
“That’s all I need. We’ve prepared for this. Everything is in place for when you go home because youaregoing home. I have full faith in that.”
“Is my mother going to be there?”
“I’m not sure. She was given notice, but I can’t be certain that she will show up. Your aunt and uncle are already on their way to the courthouse, though. She sent you some clothes and shoes, too. I’m gonna step out and let you get dressed.”
She pulled out a bag and placed the clothes and shoes on the table. After patting me on the back, she left me with the guard to change. I took a deep breath. Today, my life would change—or it would remain exactly the same for twenty more years.
I stood in the back waiting with the guard for my turn. My heart raced, and my hands were clammy. I kept taking deep breaths because I feared I would pass out from nervousness. Erica was so confident that I was going to be granted parole. I wasn’t sure what she had up her sleeve, but I had no choice but to trust her.
What seemed like forever went by before it was my turn. When I walked into the courtroom, the first people I laid eyes on were my aunt and uncle. They sat huddled together with hopeful smiles on their faces. Even though they weren’t supposed to touch me, my aunt stood and kissed my cheek.
“We love you,” she whispered.
“I love you, too.”
As I went to sit, my eyes landed on Mr. and Mrs. West, who both wore frowns on their faces. Behind them were a few other family members I’d met while my mother was dating Rodney and a lot I didn’t know. My heart fluttered thinking I would see her when I looked around the room, but she was nowhere to be found. Who I did see, however, caused my eyes to widen.
Killian Lake.
I hadn’t seen him since before my arrest, but I would never forget his face. Time had been good to him. He still looked like the seventeen-year-old boy I used to have study sessions with, just more mature and devilishly handsome in his suit. He offered me a warm smile. I didn’t return it—just focused my attention on the parole board. In the middle was the woman I assumed to be in charge. She was a beautiful black woman who looked like she played no games. She introduced herself as Andrea Lemon and then introduced her colleagues.
“You may be seated,” she said.
As soon as my handcuffs were removed, I took my seat.
“Good morning. This is a parole consideration hearing for inmate Alayah Chambers, CDC number 290451. Ms. Chambers, are you ready to proceed?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Very well. Ms. Chambers, you are currently serving a thirty-year sentence for the murder of one Rodney West. By our calculations, you have served ten of those years. Can you tell us about the crime you committed?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
I slowly stood. Behind me I heard my uncle whisper, “You got this, baby girl.” I took a deep breath before training my eyes on the parole board.
“My mother began dating Rodney when I was twelve years old. From the moment I met him, he made me uncomfortable. It was the way he looked at me or the way his touch lingered too long. He told us—me and my sisters—that he was going to be our new daddy. He did everything to make us like him or to try to gain our trust, but something about him never sat right with me.
“The older I got, the more I noticed the change in the way he acted toward me. He became very affectionate, always wanting to hug or kiss me or touch me in some way. He made me sit on his lap when I didn’t want to, and when I tried to get up, he would tighten his grip on me. He would…he would smell me and make inappropriate comments about my body and my looks.
“When I was fourteen, he forced me to drink a cup of moonshine in front of him and his friends. When I passed out, he came into my room, and that was the first time…the first time he raped me—”
“She’s a liar!” Mrs. West screamed, jumping to her feet.
“Ma’am, one more outburst, and you will be removed from this room, do you understand me?” Ms. Lemon asked.
