Song of the Blackbird (Albatross Prison #1) (3 page)

After several fruitless minutes of searching the crowd, Emma caught sight of the pristine scenery extending far beyond the barbed-wire fences. They were near the top of the hill by now so she had an unobstructed view of the terrain. She’d been too busy worrying about Mr. Roberts earlier to notice the view.

Stretches of blue mountains spread across the horizon, and nestled outside the prison gates was a lush green golf course surrounded by tall, sweeping palm trees. In the distance, rows of windmills spun their blades majestically in the cool crisp autumn air. It was hard to remember they were only an hour away from the congestion of Los Angeles. The sun shone like a beacon in the sky, illuminating all the glorious beauty of nature. It looked like paradise until one saw the barbed-wire fences and the imposing towers dotting the prison’s exterior.

“This used to be a private horse ranch of a reclusive billionaire in the 1950s.” Julien pointed to a tall building on top of the hill to the left. “There’s the Albatross Hotel, where his guests used to stay. The state took over the land in the seventies and converted it into a prison.”

“So Unit 1 patients are housed up here?” So much history lay behind the beat-up old prison.
Did Sam know any of it?
Emma was sure he’d find the prison’s history fascinating.

“No. The hotel isn’t earthquake-safe. We stopped using it as a dorm years ago.”

“So where do the inmates stay?”

“In those bungalows next to it.” Julien waved his hand to the left. “I know, it’s a lot of climbing to get back and forth to the different clinics. If you want, you can wait for a golf cart.”

“Golf cart?”

“Yes.” Julien pointed to a cart heading down the hill. “The heads of the departments get golf carts. Someone’s bound to be going back and forth and usually they’d offer you a ride if you need it. Although sometimes you can’t find a cart. They break down and take a long time to fix.”

“How come there’s such a delay to get things fixed?”

“It’s the state.” Julien shrugged. “Everything here takes forever. No funds and slow staff. We didn’t have a working phone for Dr. Tran for about six months, can you believe it?”

“That long?”

“Get used to it,” Julien warned. “The prison is over forty years old. Things break all the time. If you need anything repaired, let me know and I’ll put in a work order. They’ll eventually get to it. But prepare for a long wait.”

“Okay. Thanks for the warning.” By this time, they’d reached the top of the hill. Julien didn’t appear quite as out of breath as she was. Emma realized she should definitely hit the gym again. The last few months, she’d been too preoccupied with Sam to do much. She inhaled the cool fresh air and resolved to do better. Suddenly, a shrill call of a blackbird greeted them.

On-ke-kaaangh. On-ke-kaaangh.
The bird perched on a low-lying branch of an oak tree close to the spot where Mr. Roberts had been beaten that morning. His pitch-black wings had two bright red patches. Emma leaned forward. White streaks bordered the red.
Oh!
She felt a surge of excitement, sure this was a good omen. He was the rarest of birds, the tricolored blackbird, Sam’s favorite ever since they’d gone bird-watching together as children.

On-ke-kaaangh. On-ke-kaaangh.
The bird let out another call before spreading his wings and flying away. Sam used to look that way, confident and bold. What did he look like now? Would he be downtrodden and despondent or would he be like the blackbird, proud and free, ready to fly and sing despite what life dealt him? How she longed to see her brother again.

Chapter 3

Maxim Chambers took off his suit jacket and folded his long body into the oversized office chair.
What a morning.
He shook his head and grimaced. Bloody stupid Roberts almost got him with that knife. Maxim flexed his shoulders and felt his muscles tighten with tension. It was a close one, almost too close, but that was what he lived for. He remembered the rush of satisfaction when Roberts had fallen as flat as a pancake. He would have kicked him harder except for that annoying doctor.

She stood no taller than his shoulder but man did she pack a punch with that mouth. A rude brute, she’d called him. He guessed technically she was accurate on both counts but did she have to sound so disgusted? Her green eyes had spit fire at him. He’d never seen eyes that green. Coupled with her black hair, she looked like a bewitching cat.
Bewitching.
What the hell was he thinking? Some men might find her elfin, slender looks attractive but he preferred the tall, buxom type. Yet, those eyes. Maxim rolled his shoulders back and rubbed a hand behind his neck.
Emeralds.
That was what they reminded him of. Too bad the rest of the package didn’t match up.

Regionals had been fools to hire her. She was too young and too petite. How was she going to hold up with these godforsaken inmates? All the other doctors were men. It didn’t bode well to throw her in among the prisoners.
Damn.
He’d have to keep an extra eye out for her, another problem to add to his plate. As if he hadn’t enough problems already.

***

Back on the tour, Julien informed Emma that the inmates who needed extra protection stayed in Unit 4, the SNY or Sensitive Need Yard.

“Extra protection? From whom?” Emma asked.

“From other inmates,” Julien said, leading her out of the SNY facility. “The SNY guys are, you know…the child molesters, transgender patients, anyone who might be picked on. They’re all in this unit. Especially the ones who snitched on their gangs.”

They went out to the yard, climbed up several steps and reached another locked gate.

“Key number 527.” Julien held up his set. “It opens all the outdoor gates. And by the way, be really careful with your keys. They’re assigned to you and you have to check them in and out every day.”

“Yes. They told me that during the tour. What happens if you forget and bring them home?”

“The guards at the gate will make you bring them back, even if it’s the middle of the night.”

“That’s a little excessive, isn’t it?”

“It’s for the security of the prison. They want all the keys accounted for to make sure none goes missing. And it’s how they keep track of who’s here and who’s not.” Julien shook his set of keys. “If you don’t return them, they’ll assume that you’re still here on the grounds somewhere, especially if they can’t reach you at home. And if you ever lose your keys, you have to report it immediately.”

“Immediately?”

“Yes. They’ll shut everything down to find them. No one wants an inmate to get a hold of them.”

“That’s good to know.” Emma reached into her pocket to make sure her keys were still with her.

Julien unlocked the gate. “We’re leaving SNY and going to the admin building.”

“Does this lead to the outside parking lot?” They’d taken so many turns, she was losing her orientation.

“No. We’re still in a restricted part of the prison.” Julien locked the gate after them. “You can leave the prison by only two gates. The Falcon Port way down the hill on the west side and the Eagle gate up here. You entered the Eagle gate this morning, right?”

Emma nodded. “It’s close by, isn’t it?”

“Yes.” Julien gave her a sympathetic look. “I know, it’s confusing but you’ll get used to it. From the Eagle gate, you have to climb up a flight of stairs to reach Units 1 and 4 and then down a hill to reach Units 2 and 3. Anyway, now we’re heading to the White House, as some people call it. That’s where the head honchos sit.”

“You mean the warden?” Emma’s stomach knotted. She wasn’t looking forward to spending any more time around Maxim Chambers.

“The one and only. He likes to attend our meetings,” Julien said. “We have meetings every day to talk about patients. Dr. Kaye, the CMO, will be there.”

“CMO?”

“Chief medical officer. Didn’t she interview you?”

“No. Only Regionals interviewed me.”

“No worries. I forgot they’re shifting power to Regionals now.” Julien rubbed his bald head and kicked a small pebble out of the gravelly path they were on. Locked gates still surrounded them but they were now in a separate fenced off section next to the SNY yard.

“What does Regionals do exactly?” Emma asked.

“Sacramento wants to hire more qualified doctors, so they set up Regionals to do the hiring,” Julien said. “Used to be the CMOs could hire anyone they liked, even if the person wasn’t that good. Now only the regional departments get to do the hiring. It makes everything more uniform among the thirty-three state prisons.”

“I guess that’s a good way to get better doctors.” Emma followed the chief up a ramp into an old office building.

“Yes, but Kaye is probably upset Sacramento took the hiring power from her so don’t be surprised if she’s a little snippy.” Julien lowered his voice. “And before I forget, I wouldn’t go bad-mouthing Chambers around Kaye.”

“They’re pretty tight?”

Julien nodded. “She believes he walks on water. Major crush on him. But you didn’t hear it from me.” The chief winked and pressed his lips together with his fingers. He motioned for her to proceed down a long hallway. “And you should know Kaye is in charge of medical but Chambers is in charge of all of us. And the man’s a stickler for protocol. Wants everyone to be on time.”

Julien led Emma down a dim-lit hallway into a large conference room. The room was at least twenty feet long, with an elongated oak table in the middle flanked by an array of soft blue chairs. All the chairs were taken except for the two closest to the front.

“You’re late.” Chambers glanced at his watch and frowned from the head of the table. “Well, what are you waiting for? Come sit down.”

And a good morning to you, too.
Emma walked behind Julien and clenched her hand as she sat in the only vacant seat left. It was clear no one wanted to be next to the warden. He loomed like a mountain sitting on her left side. She pushed her chair back and tried to look inconspicuous.

“You must be Dr. Edwards.” A gorgeous woman with long blond hair appearing to be in her late thirties sat across the table. Her ruby red lips stretched in a thin smile as she extended her hand. “I’m Dr. Kaye, the CMO. Don’t be late next time.”

“Sorry.” Emma’s left hand inadvertently brushed Chambers’s arm. He stiffened up like a board. She jerked her hand back and shoved it under the table.
What was it with the man?
Waves of palpable tension emanated from him.

“Why don’t we go around and introduce Dr. Edwards to everyone?” Julien suggested.

Seven men took their turn introducing themselves. She had met everyone except for Dr. Cam and Dr. Churchill. Dr. Cam was Asian with a narrow face, kind eyes, and black hair tinged with silver. Dr. Churchill was younger with blond hair, a muscular physique, and shrewd brown eyes. He headed part of the team at Unit 4. The other physician in Unit 4 was Dr. Yee, an older gentleman with glasses and a gentle demeanor. They had been at a pharmacy meeting earlier when Julien and Emma had toured so she hadn’t met them. Apparently, Dr. Ross was still missing.

Emma made the appropriate responses, all the while sensing Chambers’s impenetrable silence as he sat as still as a statue next to her.

“Why don’t you tell us a little bit about yourself, Dr. Edwards?” Julien proposed.

The mountain moved his chair back. Emma met a penetrating pair of silver eyes. She looked away and cleared her throat. “There’s nothing much to tell. I grew up in Southern California and went to UCLA for med school and residency.”

“So this is your first real job.” Julien clapped her on the shoulder. “Welcome to Albatross. Glad to have you here.”

“Okay. Let’s move on,” Dr. Kaye interrupted, flicking back her golden mane. Her long fake nails tapped a light tattoo on the table.

“Exactly. We’re wasting too much time.” Chambers shuffled through some papers. “Let’s start with the patients in the hospital.”

“Mr. Nash was discharged last night,” Julien began. “We saw him this morning. He’s stable, not getting worse but definitely not getting any better.”

“Any recent family visits?” Dr. Churchill asked.

“His daughter came last weekend.”

“Are all the compassionate release papers filled out?”

Chambers snorted. “I wouldn’t even try if I were you. He shot a man four times in the head in cold blood.”

“Why did he shoot?” Emma asked.

Chambers glared at her. “Who cares why? It wasn’t in self-defense, that’s for sure.”

“Maybe he had a good reason,” Emma said.

Chambers’s eyebrows drew together. “Don’t be so naïve. All the inmates deserve to be here. Every one of them committed a crime.”

“Have you seen him lately?” Emma felt compelled to speak up for the poor man. “He’s barely able to get out of bed. Maybe he’s had enough punishment.”

“So now you’re an expert on the law?” Chambers asked. “The man killed someone. His sentence was twenty-five years. He’s only served five. He’s not going anywhere.”

“That’s too bad.”

Chambers’s right hand twitched beside her. “Enough about Nash. Any inmates in the hospital?”

Julien began rattling off some names.
Thank goodness Sam wasn’t one of them.
At least not this time, but had he been ill before? They’d always been close. Something horrible must have happened to him. Maybe he’d been beaten up and lay hurt somewhere all these months. But then there was the 308-35U. Surely if he was hurt, they wouldn’t have assigned him to a dorm?

One of the side doors to the conference room opened and several inmate workers lifting large boxes entered. One carried two huge boxes. His face was partially obscured but when he turned, Emma’s heart almost stopped. That uplifted nose, the frizzy hair, the lanky build. She squeezed her eyes shut and snapped them open again, sure her mind was playing tricks on her. But no
.
There he was. He turned and suddenly caught her eye. His whole body stiffened. That was it, a momentary tenseness. Nothing else. No smile, no spark of recognition. He put the boxes on the cart and followed the group of inmates out the door.

“Excuse me.” Emma hastily stood. “Sorry. I’ll be right back.” She rushed to the door, registering Chambers’s and Kaye’s identical expressions of disapproval. But what did it matter? She’d seen Sam. Her darling, beloved Sam. She flung the door open.
Where the heck were they?
They couldn’t have gone far. She bolted down the corridor, turned left, and caught a glimpse of blue going around the next corner. She ran after them. There they were, exiting the building farther down the hall.

Emma sped outside. The four inmate workers stood in a single line near the locked gate she’d entered with Julien awhile back. Their supervisor opened the gate with his set of keys. They were at least fifty yards away but Emma had no problem identifying Sam. His gait was the same. The usual swing to the arms and the mild dragging of his left foot. Courtesy of his cursed father who’d started this nightmare. Sam never turned around as the group disappeared from sight. Either he was mad at her or maybe he’d lost his memory? Had he had a concussion from some head trauma? He had to know her. There must be a reason for him to ignore her like that.

Suddenly, a blackbird’s call rang in the air.
On-ke-kaaangh. On-ke-kaaangh
. Then a short pause and another
. On-ke-kaaangh. On-ke-kaaangh.
Sam’s voice definitely.

Emma’s heart soared. She put her hand to her mouth and prayed she still remembered. “
On-ke-kaaangh. On-ke-kaaangh.
”

It didn’t come out as polished as when they’d practiced it long ago camping in the woods but it was enough. Dear God, it was enough. Tears rushed behind her eyes as the familiar birdcall echoed back to her. She swallowed several times and wiped the wetness from her cheeks. She’d found her brother at last.