Conquering The Darkness

Chapter Fifteen

Loud banging on the closet door awakens both inmates later in the night. "You better open this damn door, whore-face! How the fuck did ya even unlock it—you fuckin' untied yourself?! You're gonna be sorry for this," Mendez's voice growls on the other side. The banging continues to grow louder.

Terror instantly takes over Lorna's entire body; she grips tighter onto the redhead who lies beneath her. Her body trembles fiercely at the thought of what Mendez will do to her now—or what he might try to do to Nicky. She should have kept her mouth shut and not dragged her friend into this; she can't handle anything happening to the other.

Wrapping her arms snugger around the brunette's body, Nicky gives a comforting kiss to her forehead and stares softly into her eyes. "Shh, calm down—I'm not lettin' him do another thing to ya. Just keep quiet, kid," she whispers soothingly against Lorna's ear. Her fingers brush delicately along the younger woman's cheek.

"Don't act like you can't hear me—I know you're fuckin' in there, ya slut! I swear to God if ya don't open this damn door, I will do even worse to you than what I already have planned," Mendez hisses while continuing to bang on the door.

Nicky gently uses her hand to cover over the brunette's mouth to keep her from making any loud sounds. She brushes her fingers soothingly through her short hair and looks around the closet for somewhere to hide themselves. Finding an old – rusted-out – bookshelf behind a pile of worn-out prison clothes, she quietly carries the terrified Italian over there.

"Shh, try not to make a sound. He has to go away eventually...I hope," Nicky whispers into her ear. Her arms wrap tight around the shorter woman's waist, keeping her close against her own body as the two of them crouch together on the bottom shelf of the bookshelf—hidden by the pile of clothes. "I love you, Lorna. I love you so much, please always remember that."

Gripping deathly-tight onto the redhead's shoulders, Lorna stares up into her big eyes in fear. She nods her head profusely and very faintly whispers, "I-I love ya too, Nicky. I-I don't want Mendez to come in here and do anything to us...he'll throw us both in-in the SHU!"

Smothering her forehead and cheeks in soft kisses, Nicky shakes her head while peering softly down at her. "Calm down, baby; I'm not gonna let him do anything to us, okay? We just gotta hide out in here until he goes away. And, ya know, if somehow we do get sent there—I promise it won't be that bad. Just try to stay calm and quiet—I know you're scared, sweetie, but if he hears you let out a cry or anything we'll be in deep shit," she warmly whispers, brushing her fingers lovingly against the other's face.

The sound of the door falling to the ground causes immediate fear to rise within both women—Nicky tightens her hold on Lorna, making sure to keep her mouth covered.

Mendez furiously looks throughout the closet for the Italian inmate. "You can't hide from me, whore-face! I will find you and when I do, you're dead-meat! You hear me?" His voice roars through the air as he walks slowly around the room. When he doesn't come across anything out of the ordinary, he lets a grunt and quickly leaves the closet to continue to 'look' for her.

Lorna gazes worriedly up at the redhead, her hands gripping tightly onto her shoulders. "W-what do we do now, Nicky? D-do we have to hide in here forever?"

"Hey, babe, calm down. We're not gonna hide here forever but we can't go out right now—he'll see you and hurt you and I will not let that happen. Let's just stay here til' morning and we'll figure out what to do next. Try to get some sleep, baby; I'll be right here," the redhead softly soothes into her ear, pressing her lips warm against her forehead.

Shaking her head, the brunette stares desperately up into Nicky's eyes. Her fingertips slightly dig into her shoulders with how tight her hold is. "I-I'm sorry, Nicky," Lorna's voice shakes through a rack of sniffles.