The Teachers Inmate

Chapter One.

"She's so beautiful Maggie," Belle said staring down at the infant in the tiny bassinet.

"Thank you." Maggie smiled at her best friend.

"Seth is pretty cute too," Belle added.

"He is," Maggie agreed.

Belle moved away from the bassinet to join Maggie one the couch taking a drink of her hot tea.

"So, you and Landon thinking about kids?" Maggie asked.

"Uh...no...not for awhile at least."

"Come on, you love kids."

"I do but...he just doesn't have time for them," Belle said with a shrug.

"Being a stay at home mom was the best decision I ever made," Maggie said glancing at her kids.

"Maybe someday."

Maggie fell silent her eyes scanning Belle as she sipped her tea. Finally, Belle broke the silence.

"Okay, what's up?" Belle asked, setting her own tea aside and giving Maggie her full attention.

"Alex is getting out in two days," Maggie said.

Belles breath caught in her chest, her heart seeming to pound to a stop. Alex, her first love. The man who murdered her father and saved her life.

"I just thought you would want to know," Maggie offered.

Belle swallowed past the lump in her throat her breathing still ragged and eyes filling with tears.

"Have you talked to him lately?" Belle asked.

"Just a few days ago."

"How...how is he? does he...how is he doing?" Belle wiped a stray tear.

"Good, he's different. He's not the same man who went away, he's colder, harder."

Belle forced a nod but couldn't manage to say much more. Alex had been her saving grace, part of his sentence handed out was that he was to never speak to Belle again and he had kept his promise.

Days, then weeks and finally months and years went by, for awhile Belle had tried to visit and he refused her, she called and he turned them down she wrote letters and he ignored them until she finally gave up.

"Belle...I wasn't going to tell you but I didn't want you to bump into him here and be taken off guard." Maggie leaned forward to rest her hand on Belles' knee

Maggie was Alex's little sister, she was only a year older than Belle when the illicit affair happened. Was it really ten years already?

Belle owed Alex a lot and all that he had gotten was locked away, his life, his career, and his freedom all gone at the price of hers.

"Have you talked to him at all since he went away?"

"No, I tried but Alex promised your father and he wouldn't even return my letters."

"Does Landon know what happened?"

"No, I mean he knows some of it but...I never told him all the details."

She began spinning the engagement ring on her finger, she had been seeing Landon for a few months when he proposed but they agree on a long engagement.

"He's missed a lot," Maggie said glancing at her children again.

In ten years Alex missed Maggie's wedding and the birth of his nephew Seth and Neice Olivia Belle.

"Maggie...I'm so sorry," Belle said, tears filling her eyes even more.

"Hey, you loved him. I know that you lost him too. It's water under the bridge." Maggie gripped Belles hands in both of hers giving them a strong squeeze.

Had it not been for Maggie and her faithful friendship Belle would never have made it through the first few years.

"I have to go, parent-teacher conferences," Belle said rolling her eyes.

"Call me?" Maggie asked as Belle stood.

"Of course." Belle smiled.

She moved to give Seth a kiss on his forehead, careful not to wake him and the brush her finger across Olivia's soft cheek.

She waved at Maggie as she walked out of the house and into the driveway, she even managed to climb into her car and back onto the street completely in control of her emotions.

As soon as she was a few blocks away the mask fell off, her hands began shaking, her lower lip trembled and her eyes filled with tears.

"Alex..." The name rolled off her tongue and she choked back a sob.

After the first two years of his being gone, she finally pulled herself together. She went to college and got her degree she tried to forget he existed, that her father existed that anything that happened between them was real.

She pulled over next to a big white house, digging in her purse with numb, shaking hands she produced her phone and dialed her stepmother's number.

"Hello?"

"Jade? It's me."

"Belle? Honey, what's wrong?"

"Jade...he's getting out, he's...Alex, he's getting out."