The ride to the downtown area didn’t take long at all. I walked into the building with ten minutes to spare and took the elevator up to the fifth floor where Ms. Vera’s office was located and knocked on the door.
“Come in!” she called.
I turned the knob and walked in to find her behind her desk putting on her makeup. She looked up at me with a smile.
“Don’t mind me. I got a late start this morning.”
She capped her lipstick and put her things away. Reaching into her drawer, she pulled out the familiar urine sample cup.
“Do we have anything to worry about?” she asked, standing.
“No, ma’am. I’m clean.”
“Alright then. You know the routine.”
I nodded as I took the cup from her and went to the bathroom in her office. I wasn’t a fan of having her watch me pee in the cup, but at this point I was used to it. I wasn’t a drinker or a smoker, so I had nothing to worry about. There was no need to make a fuss of her simply doing her job.
When I was done, I capped the cup and handed it to her. She left me to clean myself up before I joined her back in the office.
“So, Alayah, how’s it been going since our last meeting?”
“Good.”
“How’s the job?”
“No problems. I completed my training, so I’m on my own now.”
“How do you feel having so much responsibility?”
“Needed. Useful. Someone’s needed me my whole life. Before, it was my little sisters. In prison, I did the girls’ hair. I don’t think my aunt and uncle need me around, but they want me there, and that makes me feel good.”
Ms. Vera smiled. “It makes a difference. A lot of people come home from prison to nothing—no job, no money, no family. It’s so easy to end up back there when you feel like you’re all alone. You’re lucky to have people who love and care about you. I can’t say the same for a lot of my clients.”
She scribbled on her notepad momentarily before looking back up at me.
“Have you had any more trouble from the Wests?”
I shook my head. “No. I haven’t seen anybody else, and according to my aunt, the social media post was removed.”
“Good. You let me know if there are any more issues.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Any other news?”
I smiled. “I spoke with my sisters.”
She gave me an empathetic look. “That’s great, Alayah. I know how important that is for you. What about your mom?”
“There’s no salvaging that relationship, Ms. Vera. She doesn’t even want me to see them.”
“You have to be careful, sweetheart. One call to the police, and she can ruin your parole.”
“I know. I just…I miss them so much. They’re older now, and they should have the right to decide if they want to see me or not.”
“They should, but she’s their legal guardian. Ultimately, she has the final say so. You have to respect that. It’s different if you see them alone in public and you three have a conversation. She can’t ban you from public spaces, but you can’t just go to the house—you went to the house, didn’t you?”
I hung my head, knowing that my face had given me away. “Yes.”
