Chapter One
The afternoon air had been cooler the week the world fell into chaos. Autumn was settling into the country and Aisha was happy about it. The girl was seated on a bench in the park listening to music and drawing something meaningless in her sketchbook.
Dogs and owners walked through the park rather quickly not liking the chilling air. Sighing, she looked up from her sketch which looked like a large tree with blowing leaves. Out of habit, she looked down the hill and towards a large fenced area, no doubt her father was inside.
It had been almost a year since she had seen her father and she was counting down the days until she could see him again. Her eyes unfocus slightly when she sees the tendrils of hot air escaping her mouth. Out of childish behavior, she breathed out a few times imagining herself as a dragon in some far land and away from this life.
She almost jumped in fright at the sudden alarm from her phone. She grabbed the phone and swiped the alarm away then packed up her book before leaving the park and towards the prison.
On purpose, she walks on the fallen leaves feeling satisfied at the crunch beneath her boots. Smiling to herself, she turned up the music on her phone and walked a little faster to the prison.
Five minutes later, the girl arrived at the large, imposing, red building and an face to face with a rather serious-looking officer looking through his list.
"Hello, I'm here to see Hans Akkerman." She says to the man who nods and looks her over. She was definitely beautiful in an exotic way, her brown curly hair coiling in many directions around her heart-shaped face. Big light brown eyes with noticeable black specs caught the warm light turning her eyes into honey.
Her body structure was always complimented on, even more than she liked. Curves in all the right places from what she supposed she got from her mother from pictures she had seen. Her height was not on the tall side or the short side, she had a strong well defined back. But she did have soft layers on her stomach.
"Passport and documents for visitation." Giving him the neatly folded papers already in her hand, she shuffled on her feet feeling a little intimidated. The man nodded at her after inspecting her passport then she buzzed through the door.
She already knew what room she had to meet her father in because she had been there every week on regular Friday afternoons. It wasn't like her father made a terrible crime, quite the opposite actually her father had been charged with selling illegal car parts.
Hans had a steady job fixing vehicles, however, he had been caught installing illegal car parts. Thus now he was in prison, a fifteen-minute walk from her own home.
Aisha walked into the cantina area where she immediately spotted her father slouched in his seat, in bright orange overalls and an incredibly messy head of brown curls. Without waking him, she crept into the seat opposite him and studied her father closely.
He didn't look like how she'd expect someone who was in prison to look. No, instead he had a curtain glow to his face. No sight of eye bags or fatigue was shown in her father's eyes. Perhaps he was slightly underweight but not incredibly noticeable unless you were looking for it.
She watched as he groaned and shifted in the uncomfortable metal chair. His eyes briefly fluttered open and she smiled when they widened and smiled at her. Big honey eyes met her own brown eyes and she smiled at them.
"Hello, father." She teased and his smile widened, exposing a dimple on his right cheek. He leaned over and laid his large hand on her head patting it down softly.
"There is my pretty daughter. Did you grow since the last time I saw you?" He says in a rather deep voice. His accent wasn't American like everyone else around here, no his accent was pure Dutch. After all, they had moved to America three years ago after her mother had left them, and now it was just the two of them against the world.
"Oh come on Pop I was here last week. I haven't changed at all." She says and her father laughed shaking his head and ruffling her hair. He was a huge man, as most Dutch people are, he measured well over six feet and 3 inches. His massive build was also supported by muscles upon muscles earned from his work.
"Dear daughter you have become even more beautiful since I have seen you. I can't wait to get out of this stinky place, I've had enough of these gangsters in here." Aisha giggles at her father's words. Gangsters? This jail didn't hold incredibly dangerous people but she assumed there would be a few too many troublemakers. She was just happy to see that her father was unharmed.
"Did you make any friends dah?" She asked and her father scoffed leaning back.
"I suppose I've made a few "friends." He says using air quotes for friends. Aisha smiled and rested her elbow on the table.
"What are they like? Super bad guys?" Her father shook his head and sighed.
"There is this one big fella with more tattoos than the skin, who helps me with laundry duty, and loves to talk about his dog waiting for him outside." Her father said gesturing to areas on his body where he had tattoos. Her father only had one tattoo on his body as far as she knew. It was a large dragon going up the side of his body from waist to armpit.
"Another fellow in there not older than you, rather handsome fellow. Rather moody, and silent but always gets into fistfights over little things. But he talks to me about cars and I teach the boy as best as I can." She tilted her head at his story.
"And can't you wait to get out? You don't seem so unhappy here." Her father regarded her.
"Oh I can't wait to get out of here but it's been a very interesting experiment. I would have liked to know how it was in jail but not when I had my little girl to take care of."
She slit her eyes at him for calling her small. She stood 5'5 feet tall which made her small but she would never admit that.
"Akkerman. Hans." A guard walked to their table and Aisha knew it was time to go. She got up, shouldering her bag, and wrapped her father in a hug. The man behind her was about to protest about touching the inmate but she quickly let go of her father before she could start drama.
Her father smiled and stood up.
"I'll see you in a week, Aisha, you take care of yourself, and don't forget to tell your brother I said hi." Aisha nodded and flashed him her best smile. She didn't t feel like getting emotional in front of her father so she waved and left the room rather quickly before the tears fell.
After 15 minutes of walking, she reached the front steps of her home where she stayed with her older brother. Aaeiden had resulted in sitting at home and bumming around rather than going outside as he used to when her father was around. He would not touch the hunting equipment in the garage as he used to when Dah was around and this made Aisha sadder than she would admit.
He had issues with our father and it was still unspoken. He didn't visit his father in prison and she understood why slightly. He was mad that their father could do something so risky and then make his children go without a father for a year.
"BRO I TOLD YOU ON THE FUCKING ROOF!" Rolling her eyes she closed the door behind her and followed the sound of her brother's gaming screams.
He was sitting on the couch screaming at the tv with his headphones in. She sighed and plopped next to him, he didn't take his eyes off the screen but he handed her a bag of chips. She took it and examined him.
Obviously, he had bags under his eyes from late-night playing. His brown mess of curls on his head was now too long over his head and she wanted to throw up from how smelly he was. She scooted back muttering about throwing him in the bath when he sighed and put down the controller.
"How is he?" He asked referring to their father. Her eyes lit up. He had yet to ask how her father was doing since he was put in jail. She smiled and locked eyes with her brother. Aaeiden had a little green in his eyes but only if they caught the sunlight.
"He is doing good I suppose. He gets out next week and then he will be home with us. He told me to tell you hi." I say and my brother looks away with a tight jaw.
"Maybe he should just stay in there." At hearing this her jaw ticked. Her anger bubbled to the surface quickly, it was one of the many reasons why she always fought with her brother. He always liked to prove how much he disapproved of their father and she hated it, this always ended in a fight. It was also not helping that she had started to develop quite some anger issues toward her brother.
Sometimes she would go as far as to pounce on her brother and fight her best. Obviously, she was smaller but she knew how to pack a punch.
"How could you even say that?"