I looked Miller in the eye and told him a lie so bold it made my skin crawl. I claimed the Warden had personally authorized a spiritual visitation for the transition. He hesitated, his eyes darting between my badge and the weeping woman, before finally lowering his light.
We reached the bars, and the silence that followed was heavier than the stones of the prison itself. Elias was standing now, his face pressed against the cold steel as he stared at the woman he thought he’d never see again. Neither of them spoke; they just breathed in unison.
I unlocked the outer gate, a move that was a felony without a secondary witness present. As the gate swung open with a metallic shriek, Elias collapsed to his knees on the hard floor. He reached out through the inner bars, his fingers twitching with desperate anticipation.