When Love Lasts: A Sapphic Short Story Collection

⚡️ Live On (Lyn's Prison Bonus Scene)

January 10, 2022

(Canon) Bonus Short Story of my book, The Lightning Mage, expanding upon chapter 28.

Word Count: 1,832

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Isabella pushed the door open, and her eyes twitched.

Sitting opposite the glass partition was a familiar man, with a face so stoic and nonchalant it made her rage.

She let out a curse before slumping on the chair.

"Why the hell are you here?"

Neil did not smile; he barely even acknowledged her. His arms were crossed as if he wanted his tanned biceps to stick out as much as possible, while his head tilted to the side.

"Why can't I visit my daughter?"

Isabella snorted. That was quite a statement coming from someone who had never bothered to find her willingly all these years.

"What do you want from me?" she asked. "There's no way you're here just for me."

Neil leaned back on his chair. The wrinkles around his eyes had more than doubled since the last time she had seen him. Then again, more than a decade had passed. More than a decade where she had been stuck in prison.

"You're right," her father admitted unabashedly. "There's gonna be someone joining you in prison today. That's why I'm here."

"You say as if this place is a fun little club for people to join."

Neil ignored her snide comment and continued, "I need to get to her, but I also need her to trust me."

"And where do I come in?"

"I need you to get close to her, and introduce her to me. As a trusted source."

Isabella scrutinized her father. The tall man always had such a poker face, it was impossible for her to understand what he was thinking. Not that she was ever looking to understand a person who would put their own daughter to prison.

She averted her head. "And what do I have to gain from this?"

"Can't you just do it as a favor for your old man?"

"No."

A chuckle escaped his lips. It was the only emotion he let slip out, and it was one of sardonic amusement. Typical.

"You're still as stubborn as ever, Izzy."

"Don't call me that," she snapped. "You don't deserve to call me that."

"Sure," he said with a small smile. Then, he lowered his head and sighed. "I'm getting close, you know. That... curse. I'm getting close to a solution."

Isabella froze as her heart jumped to her throat. "W... What?"

Was that what he had been working on all this time?

"I can save both you and your mother from it. I just need your help to get to this person."

No matter how shocking the revelation of Neil's potential discovery was, Isabella was still caught off guard by the phrase 'you and your mother'. Especially the way Neil had said it. As if her mother could still be saved; as if she were still around.

She gulped. "Mom is dead."

"Temporarily."

"No." She raised her voice. "Mom is dead, Dad."