Free Then There Was You by Melanie Dawn Page A

See you in a few.”
    I grinned at the boys and made my way down the hall to my supervisor’s office.
    “Damn, Mrs. Honeycutt is sexy,” I heard DeAndre whisper as I walked away. “Look at that ass. She’s a MILF if I ever saw one.”
    “Hell yeah,” agreed another guy, whose voice I didn’t quite recognize. “I bet she’s good in bed.”
    Chris put them in their place. “Shut up, asshole. Have some fucking respect.”
    “Yeah, dumbass. Show some respect,” Greg echoed.
    I ignored the exchange and kept walking toward Val’s office. Working with a bunch of hormonal teenage guys, I accepted the fact that inappropriate comments just came with the territory. I didn’t base my self-worth on the antics of a few pubescent boys.
    “Good morning, Salem,” Val greeted me when I popped into her doorway.
    “Good morning, Val. I just came to get the details of our newcomer.”
    “Oh, great,” she said, as she pushed her glasses up onto her nose and began shuffling through some papers on her desk. “Here it is.” She handed me a folder.
    I opened it up and glanced at the picture. A cute kid with freckles looked way too serious for his age in the mugshot. “Wow, he looks young.”
    Val nodded. “Twelve years old.”
    “Oh my…” my voice trailed. “Assault. Robbery. Drug Paraphernalia.”
    Val nodded empathetically. “They seem to get younger and younger these days.”
    “No kidding. When does he arrive?” I asked.
    “A little after lunch,” she replied.
    “Okay, so I have some time to join the guys in the rec room. I’ve learned that we have some of our best group therapy sessions when we’re shooting hoops.”
    “Glad to see you’re getting your guys to open up. How has it been, coming back after maternity leave?”
    A sharp stab of guilt shot through my conscience. “Fine. Everything has been just fine,” I lied.
    No, really. I’m fine. Really , I tried to convince myself. Never mind the fact that Alexis screamed in the backseat all the way to daycare this morning, and my nerves were shot before I’d even finished my first cup of coffee.
    Val smiled, completely fooled. “Great! Glad to hear it. Okay, well I’ll see you at intake a little after lunch then.”
    “Sounds good. See you then.” As I stepped out of her office, the door clicked behind me. I leaned against the cold, beige wall, out of her sight.
    Taking a few deep breaths, tears formed in my eyes. I’m fine. Everything is fine. Nothing is wrong. I just need to get back to the boys. They’re expecting me.
    I walked to my office and dropped the folder on my desk. Stepping out of my heels, I slipped into my sneakers. Time for a little mindless activity. Get your head in the game, Salem. Literally and figuratively.
    I waited for the guards to slide open the big metal door to the rec room. It was a lot like a high school gymnasium, but without bleachers. Just a big open room with basketball hoops.
    “She’s here!” I heard Malik shout as the door buzzed, indicating that it had been unlocked.
    Officer Harris slid the door open. “Here you go, Mrs. Honeycutt.”
    “Thanks,” I said, stepping into the room. The echoes of the basketballs bouncing off the walls and the squeaking shoes against the newly polished floor rang in my ears.
    “Think fast!” Malik said as he tossed the ball in my direction.
    I caught it and tossed it back immediately. “Think faster,” I joked.
    Malik laughed and dribbled off toward the basket, shooting a layup. I rebounded the ball and shot one myself.
    “Nice shot!” DeAndre congratulated me from across the room. He ran toward us and tried to steal the ball from Malik.
    “No way.” Malik darted away from him, passing the ball to me.
    I took a shot. “Whooo! Nothing but net!” I shouted the instant the ball swooshed through the hoop.
    “Wow, Mrs. H!” Malik sounded impressed. “You got skills.”
    Before long, a little game of three-on-three started.
    We were all playing, laughing, sweating, and