Aiden nodded and let Nigel lead the way through the maze-like corridors to the warden’s office.
“It’s a good size and has its own bathroom,” the guard pointed out with pride, crossing his hands behind his back. “I’ll leave you to it. If you need anything, my break starts in ten minutes. I’ll be in the staff room down the corridor. Red metal door, you can’t miss it. We passed by it on the way here.”
Aiden dismissed Nigel and looked around. The interior wasn’t much, comprising the bare necessities—a desk and a chair, drawers, a cabinet, a few shelves, and a worn-out couch to accommodate any visitors. Unsurprisingly, it was a major downgrade compared to his previous workspace at his own company, but nothing he couldn’t work with given the generous sum Management had put aside for the prison renovations. He hadn’t been told why there was a rush to get the play court and field repaired, but it probably had to do with the prisoners’ problematic behavior he’d been tasked to improve.
Aiden hauled the small backpack off his shoulder, placing it on the floor and sank in the squeaky office chair.
This was really happening.He’d used all his savings and the help of a hacker to get a fake ID and scam the entire prison system so he could get the substitute warden job. It came with a teaching position on top of all his duties, but he didn’t mind it because it gave him the chance to infiltrate this place more effectively. To get to know who he was up against. All of this was part of his plan. A means to an end. It made use of his knowledge, his experience, hismoney, and his darkness. It didn’t care who he’d been prior; his passion and ambitions had no place here anymore. They belonged in the past along with all those other things that would only get in the way of his mission.
What about afterwards?
Hanging his head back, Aiden stared at the gray ceiling. He allowed a small smile at the thought, but let it pass as that guilt within him rose up. The after didn’t matter right now. The future was not important, not until he’d avenged Claudia’s unjust death. And to do that, he only needed to focus on the present. On the role he had to perform.
This was his realm now. He was the substitute warden of the Horizons Space Prison and he had only one goal.
To end Darren Howe.
Chapter 2
Aiden connected his laptopto the holographic monitor encased in amag-alumframe, making sure his credentials worked before locking up the warden’s office. He headed over to the staff room to place his lunch in the fridge. A few of the guards were there, sipping morning coffee.
“Hey, boss,” Nigel greeted, tilting his chin up. “Everything good with the office?”
“It will do for now.” Aiden scanned the hard faces of the guards, meeting every pair of eyes. “How’s the shift been so far?”
“Fab. We’re yet to have even a single fight today.”
“Shush, Nige. Don’t jinx it, man,” the guard with the nose scuff who was sitting on Nigel’s left teased. Andrey, as per his nametag.
“Someone giving you trouble?” Aiden followed up, curious whether there was someone he needed to look out for. The last thing he needed was problems on his first day.
Andrey shrugged his massive shoulders. “Just the usual. But we heard the higher-ups want to improve the prison’s stats. That true?”
Aiden crossed his arms and eyed the coffee machine. “Yes. I was told they want results by the end of the month. If I had to guess, there’s probably going to be an inspection.”
One of the other guards clapped his hands loudly. “You owe me fifty creds, Mike. Told you they’ve been whining about our discipline because some fancyass is coming!”
The men switched to gossip and friendly jibes while Aiden went through the list of students enrolled in his class. As much as he wanted to stay and pretend he was interested in bonding with his new colleagues, he had a lecture to give.
Bidding the others a pleasant shift, he made his way to the classroom past the library and the med office. Normally, a warden’s duties excluded teaching, but the man Aiden was slotting in for had rolled out some kind of rehabilitation program which was currently understaffed. The extra duties came with extra credits of course, so when the interviewer had asked if Aiden was interested in teaching a Business and Entrepreneurship class once or twice a week, he’d been quick to agree. It also helped that he’d run his own architecture firm once upon a time, making it an easy decision.
Aiden nodded at the guard stationed outside the room and peeked through the glass panel. Two more were stationed inside and half of the desks were occupied, meaning all of those currently enrolled were in attendance. Squaring his shoulders, Aiden waved his palm at the scanner and the doors slid open. The chatter immediatelyceased and multiple heads turned his way, following him as he strode across the room to the wooden desk by the reinforced window.
Among the fifteen pairs of eyes, one set stood out. Darren Howe’s indigo irises stared him down from beneath raven lashes and a buzz cut that could use some trimming. Aiden swallowed and squeezed the tablet to his chest, his heart suddenly galloping as little zaps prickled his fingertips. A stubble covered Darren’s chiseled jaw, making the golden hoop piercing on the left side of his full lips pop even more.
Claudia’s murderer was a handsome man. Objectively so, and in a way that made Aiden’s entire being feel on the brink of exploding. Adrenaline flooded his blood, making the world spin. Darren Howe was here, alive and well and so very close. Aiden’s fingers tingled as the little shocks spread through the rest of him, leaving no part of his skin untouched. His chest tightened and tried to expand beyond his ribs at the same time. He wanted to lunge for Darren and strangle him. To hurt him, to kill him, to make him pay for what he’d done. Right here and now.
But he couldn’t. Not yet. He couldn’t allow himself to act impulsively before the time was right or he wouldn’t get that elusive closure he so desperately needed. He had a plan, and he had to follow it no matter how tempting it felt in this moment to throw caution to the wind and end Darren Howe once and for all.
Taking a deep breath, which he somehow managed to mask behind a neutral smile, Aiden forced himself to calm down. The second he did, he flinched at the intensity in Darren’s gaze, fearing that the man had seen right through his deception.
No, that wasvery unlikely.He hadn’t really been featured on the news, both while the investigation of Claudia’s murder had lasted and during the trial.
Aiden inhaled slowly again, reassuring his racing mind as he reached behind his ear and rubbed the tattooed ‘C’. He’d bleached his copper hair dirty blond and put on a few kilograms in muscle just in case. He hadn’t bothered to change his eye color, but brown was not exactly impressionable or rare. Even if anyone here had been following Claudia’s case, there was a very slim chance that they might realize who he really was.
Aiden forced another smile, shaking off the urge to wrap his hands around Darren’s neck. Their gazes settled into each other, but instead of looking away first in a sign of respect, the other man’s lips quirked to one side as he poked his tongue out and ran it over the piercing. Aiden’s heart rate elevated as a rush of heat speared through him and goosebumps rose across his arms. The action was sensual, inviting even, leaving the ornament glistering and Aiden’s eyes glued to it for a moment that stretched far too long.
Fighting to get the fire dancing beneath his skin under control and stave off the bolt of disgust that followed it, Aiden disallowed any further interaction between them. He traced the small bump the amber stone formed across his pocket to recenter himself and placed the tablet on its stand on the desk. Once it connected to the holographic board behind him, he picked the tablet and scribbled his partially fake name on it. His neat letters appeared in the space confined between the board’s holoframes.
