V - Rollover and Bark Bitch.

I V Y

The silence was sombre, unlike when she was with Levi where the lack of noise was partly comforting. Ivy thought over everything she could have done wrong that would call for the family lawyer's visit. Just the thought of him made her gulp. He and her father were fairly acquainted, friends even. But Ivy hated him, his appearance forced her to feel uncomfortable and the sight of the lawyer made her skin crawl.

He was a bad omen to worse comings. Always.

The guard led the way in front of her, blissfully unaware of the evil who waited for them at their destination.

Her vision grew dizzying as the repetitive hallways were blurred in one continuous line, yet Ivy's focus was so intense that she could just about make out the officer. Her heart hammered against her chest, she almost couldn't breathe from the overwhelming fear.

It wasn't long until they came across the double doors that Ivy had crossed upon arrival. It was opened by the guard to reveal the short path to the other set of double doors. The mesh fencing did little to hide the grassy yard which was now occupied by other inmates. By the sight of her without the protection of Jasper or Levi, they swarmed the fence at the opportunity to get close. Grown men crowding to even get a whiff of her scent. 

Ivy kept her head down as she carried on walking to her doom, tilting her head to the side to peer discreetly at the mesh fencing. She was so thrown off track that she didn't bother to hold her facade.

In the background, past the colossal crowding of rowdy men, she spotted a familiar head of brown hair - cut short at the sides. Kendrick. The name rang across her mind. He was facing her way, looking straight at her but not resorting to joining the crowd, only lingering in the field on his lonesome.

Huh.

The other double set of doors opened as she walked in, blocking her view of Kendrick.

Unfortunately, their arrival wasn't too time-consuming, the brisk walk made Ivy feel like she was a lamb being led to slaughter on short notice. This oddly reminded her of when her father would take her to meet him. She tried to swallow the lump in her throat which stubbornly refused to leave.

They stopped in front of a gated door which the officer unlocked with his set of keys before unlocking the next, wooden door.

It swung open to another bland room, made up with a table and two chairs. Much like an interrogation room with a mirror spanning across one of the walls. The door shut behind her as the guard left her in the room with him. The family lawyer.

He was an older man, in his mid-50s, he didn't seem like a lawyer. He was very tall like most of the men in this prison and looked to be someone who held more power than just a lawyer. He dressed in a fitted black suit with a dark, maroon tie. A matching pocket square accompanied.

Same old.

He seemed to ooze confidence and control while Ivy tried desperately to hide her seemingly irrational fear of him. Though to her, it was very rational.

She stood by the door while he stood behind the chair opposite her.

"Take a seat" He ordered in a strictly business voice, motioning to the chair closer to her. 

At least the table would be between them and they'd be in public, kind of. Letting the false insecurity guide her, she took a seat in the metal chair. The family lawyer followed suit. Sawyer Dixton.

"I'll get straight to the point" Sawyer cut through the tension with his sharp tone "You have not just been sent to prison to be taught a lesson, especially one with only men" He stated.

Ivy's green eyes visibly widened in shock.

"So why?" She questioned, her disbelief plainly obvious.

His eye-contact never wavered, it was another thing of Sawyer that deeply unsettled Ivy. His equally green eyes burned into hers. Salt and pepper hair trimmed short, strictly slicked back as if to not distract him from his steely gaze.

"You're here for Intel among other things" He kept it short, no messing around "And you don't have a choice whether or not you want to play along, we have people on the inside here to change your mind for the better" His thin lips stretched in a smirk, promising bad things. That was another thing of Sawyer that disturbed her, his smirk. 

His underlying threat lingered in her head. What could she expect, he was a literal bad omen.

"Oh" She seemed to have conflict, on whether or not she should follow with what they say.

"Is that what William wanted with me?" She asked, not referring to her father by title, instead, she chose to call him by name.

Sawyer only shook his head "Your father doesn't make his own decisions,  believe it or not, I do" He paused causing her suspense to grow "I'm not even a lawyer, I'm much more than that but nothing you need to know"

Huh. She knew he didn't look like a lawyer.

Ivy Monroe was overcome by a sudden frustration.

"So?" She hissed, fed up with beating around the bush. Momentarily forgetting who she was talking to.

"You will get directions from another already in the prison, all you need to do it follow them. If you fail, you won't like the consequences" He explained, still holding his menacing smirk "I'm only here because I wanted to tell you personally"

"For the whole year, I have to do this?" 

Ivy thought this was almost unbelievable, but looking back at her life, mostly anything was believable at this point.

"Of course, however long it takes" He lay his palms on the table, preparing to push up "Any other questions?"

Ivy took a quick intake of breath, shaking her head, she still couldn't get over the shock of this truth.

"If you do, you can ask the other person who I'll have approach you"

With that, he stood straight up, buttoning his suit up before walking out a different door to which she entered. He rapped on the door twice which caused it to instantly unlock, a guard walking in afterwards and led her back to D Block.

She felt numb, blindly following behind the guard. Her arms still ached from the short session in the gym with Levi and she no longer felt motivated to work out.

Who was the accomplice? And how far would they go to change her mind 'for the better'? The one thing that she did know, was that she wasn't going to just roll over for them like a damn dog. She was going to bite until they had no choice but to let her out back into the real world. Her decision may not be the smartest, but her mind was working overtime to come up with a way to get her out of this. Why did Sawyer even think she'd be good enough?

The steam was practically coming out of her ears by the time they stopped in front of the familiar double doors. Her and the not-so-lawyer's conversation was extremely short. 

At least it made more sense as to why they needed to place a tracker on her ankle. For all she knew, it could even act as a shock collar. Depending on how much they wanted to treat her like a dog. She wouldn't put it past Sawyer though.

The officer pushed open the doors, Ivy following behind him into the short pathway to the other set. Through the mesh fencing, Ivy could see that Inmates were still in the yard. Maybe she could go in the yard too, lie on the grass and hope the ground will open up and swallow her.

Kendrick was still in the same place she saw him before, though now he was facing away from her, unaware of her return.

Those who did notice her didn't bother to crowd the mesh fence like before, only grinning at her re-entrance into the cage of hungry beasts. Something clicked in her at the feeling of being trapped, triggering memories of her past she'd rather forget.

A prey among predators. She was but a deer caught in headlights in their eyes, little did they know she was more deranged on the inside than the outside. Her mind was broken beyond repair and there was nothing anyone could do about it, she was just good at hiding her flaws. 

She was more like a starved lioness, looking for the opportunity of a free meal.

Her mane of black hair bounced with each prowling step she took as Ivy stalked behind the guard. Her frustrations would have to be spent on someone in here if she couldn't stand up against Sawyer. Her eye twitched for a moment.

They entered Block D through the other set of doors.

"How can I get into the yard?" Ivy asked, her face free of any emotions, her short fuse sparking on the last length. Time was ticking, the numbers growing alarmingly closer and distorted.

The guard grunted as he changed directions. Right, he was going to take her.

He left her by the entrance of the yard with little to no words.

"Here you go" He said before walking off.

Ivy growled under her breath, her eyes burning with determination. Her mind was running haywire yet her body knew which direction to take.

As she entered the yard, her tracker beeped twice, all eyes were on her. A grassy expanse of a field and small outside gym hosted the majority of Block D. But Ivy zeroed in on one particular inmate, the first one she recognized.

Jasper. He stood out from the crowd, she'll show him whos the real bitch.

She stalked towards him, her fists clenching, his back was facing her and it wasn't long before she reached him. She stopped right behind him.

Ivy huffed as one of his friends signalled behind him, Jasper peered over his shoulder but fully turned when he saw her.

"You missed me so soon?" He asked with a sly smirk. Ivy hated smirks, it reminded her of Sawyer.

Ivy drew back her fist, throwing her first punch since her arrival to the prison. Despite the height difference, she was able to uppercut his jaw which caused him to stumble back.

Everyone saw. Some grew closer in a circle as they tried to get a closer look.

"Bitch" She hissed out. Her eyes holding a murderous glint.

"Damn girl, who ruffled your feathers?" Jasper joked, though when he gained his balance, he took a more defensive stance "I don't hit girls so back off"

"Roll over" Ivy taunted.

"Don't Ivy" He warned.

"Down, Boy" She continued.

"I.. don't.. hit.. girls.." Jasper gritted out. His happy-go-lucky demeanour changing.

"Well I do" Was the only warning before she twisted her body and rose her foot to kick him straight in the stomach. The wind was knocked out of him from the hidden strength behind the kick. Her foot hit the ground as she raised her fists.

"Fight me Bitch" She growled out, she needed something to ground her.

A crowd had formed around them, some cheering for Ivy while others encouraged Jasper to throw his first punch.

To which he did.

"Don't cry now" He retorted, he threw his fist to punch her across the face, but Ivy knew more than she let on. She ducked, rising once more to knee him in the abdomen, near the top half of his crotch.

He bent over in pain, clutching the area. Ivy gripped his blonde hair to hold him in place as she immediately kneed his face without hesitating. He let out a grunt as he stumbled back unsteadily. When Jasper fell into the crowd, they pushed him back towards her. By the time they had done so, he recovered enough to hit his target, hitting her in the stomach full force.

She gasped, coughing as she felt her breakfast start to rise in her throat. 

Ivy all but stood straight once more with a manic smile, teeth showing at the stinging embrace of pain which radiated from her stomach. The bandages felt like they restricted her arms, her jumpsuit was loose enough for free movement.

She gripped the bandage on her arm, ripping them off to reveal extensive burn marks as she pushes up her sleeves past her elbows. The bandages flowed down to the ground, dancing with the wind.

"Bark for me Bitch" A screw came loose in her mind as she let it all go. Cutting the last string that was holding Jasper back without a second thought and a need for more pain, anything to distract her from the memories flitting through her mind. 

He moved to punch her again in the face and she took it as her face fell sideways, revelling in the attention as the shouts rose. No guards came. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Levi's overtowering form pushing through the crowd towards her. Another familiar face was mixed in, Kendrick, simply observing as her smile widened further into a full-on toothy grin.

Focusing her full attention back on Jasper, Ivy charged as her vision faded to red, greeting her knuckles with his neck as his throat collapsed under the pressure. He fell to his knees on the floor gasping for breath. Ivy roughly kicked him onto his back before moving to straddle him with ease.

Whistles came from the crowd but for all the wrong reasons.

Spurred on, she began her torrent of hits. Landing each blow on Jasper's face as she let all her anger overflow from her. Sickening cracks and blood flew wild as she began to laugh. The crowds cheer haltered at the slightly crazed look in her eyes.

"Go to sleep Bitch" She ordered before she was suddenly dragged off of him, Jasper was left a bloody and limp mess.

"Let me go!" She screamed.

Ivy spun to try and throw a punch but another set of hands gripping her fists to restrain them. When she struggled to fight back, a zap from her anklet sent her convulsing. No fucking way, they didn't. A shock collar in the form of an anklet.

Ivy Monroe was left in a slight daze as she looked up into an unfamiliar pair of stark grey eyes. Wow.

"Thanks, Seb" Levi's voice came from behind her "What the fuck was that shock"

Seb shrugged, still focused on Ivy's subdued expression.

"She stopped fighting" His gruff voice stated as he let her fists go.

They fell limp on her lap. A small, satisfied grin was still on her lips as her eyes fell to the side to gaze at the crowd. Kendrick standing stock still amongst the rowdy bunch.

She giggled at him, finding his sour expression amusing.

"It's you isn't it" She mumbled almost incoherently but both Seb and Levi caught on, looking to where she was looking but not spotting the person at the receiving end. Kendrick had quickly turned to hide deeper within the crowd. Her hand flopped onto the paving as she pushed off of Levi to stand up. Her mind calming down as her adrenaline lessened. A starved lioness no longer. The throbbing sensation on her stomach and face reminded her of what she had just done. A purple bruise was already forming on her pale cheek, tarring the even skin tone.

Little did she know, cameras across the courtyard were zeroed in on Ivy, observing. Sawyer was watching.

She walked into the direction that Kendrick took as if nothing had just happened. Stumbling like she was intoxicated.

The crowds parted for her as she neared, almost fearful and apprehensive. That was when the guards finally came, only seeing a bloody, unconscious Jasper as Ivy merged with the soon dispersing crowds. Her fists still a bloody mess as she wiped her hands on her jumpsuit to clean off her sore knuckles.

The lack of sleep and overexertion of energy was taking its toll on her body, she felt like she could fall asleep standing up. But she waded through the crowd until Kendrick came into view again, sitting by himself on the grassy field. Inmates began to scatter around the yard, Seb and Levi coming to a temporary alliance as they saw Ivy walk to where Kendrick sat.

She didn't sit down, she stood beside him. Wavering like a leaf with the wind which picked up as gusty waves tumbled across the forest top and into the yard.

"You?" She questioned, she didn't need to emphasize, if it was him who was the accomplice- then he'd know what she was talking about.

Kendrick sat still, crossed legged with his hands resting behind him as he leant back.

"Yes" Was his simple answer.

"Huh" she huffed out, slightly weary from Sawyer's threat.

"What's up?" She asked, looking up to the sky. It was clear today apart from a few clouds left behind. 

Kendrick didn't bother to reply to the small talk, keeping his gaze fixed on the grass blades that flecked against his slightly exposed ankles.

"Got anything important you want to tell me?" Ivy continued as if she hadn't just been ignored. She was still out of it, not in her right mind as her vision blurred for a split second.

"As of yet, No" He informed. Her vision cleared as she looked down on Kendrick.

"What's your name? I only know that your Kendrick" She was slightly curious as to who this man was.

"Tanner Kendrick" 

"Oh, nice to meet you, I'm Ivy Monroe" She said with a small smile, thankful that he hadn't ignored her this time around "I would shake your hand, but I have blood on mine so a suppose I shouldn't" She finished with a hum as she looked across the yard.

Inmates had spread out and a few were still blatantly staring at her. She couldn't see Levi or Seb, who she quickly assumed was her cellmate. He seemed nice... She thought absentmindedly. 

While keeping her distance from Tanner, Ivy also sat on the grass, lying down on it with a deep sigh as she spread out like a starfish. She could currently care less of what people thought of her. She closed her eyes, this time around, there was no blinding fire - only the dim shine of the sunlight from behind her eyelids.

"Today's a nice day" She commented, unaware that Tanner was now staring straight at her. Looking over the burns scarring her forearms, her sleeves still pushed past her elbows.  Seeing the bruise that formed on her cheekbone, camouflaging the splay of freckles in the area. Her eye colour was still a mystery, her eyelashes fanned small shadows beneath her eyes.

"Not really" Tanner said, looking behind him to spot two men who were abnormally large, both staring straight at him and Ivy with a stern expression. One had dirty blonde hair while the other had a thicket of black hair much like Ivy's, they were both built like beasts.

He turned to look back at Ivy.

"Goodnight Tanner" She mumbled, her head lilting to the side slightly.

Kendrick scoffed, it was still early morning. But he didn't ruin the small peace she found lying on the grassy field.

"Night" He played along, deciding to stick by her side until she chose to wake up. He glanced up at the sky, pale blue as no clouds providing camouflage. He preferred stormy nights and rain.

Ivy Monroe was different, she was an onion with many different layers and just being around her would make people cry. Yet to Tanner, she was still that injured bird he saw on the bus, just defensive to being trapped in a corrosive cage.

She was still prey among predators. She chose to sleep right next to one. One who specialised in discreet undertakings.

She was a little injured bird that needed the crocodile's protection.