Summary: The story had been front page news for months. Scandalous details of a married woman of low birth and with limited means, murdering her husband; hatcheting him to death in order to save her own life and that of her unborn child - or so she claimed. No evidence to support her allegations of abuse had been presented during the trial, but in the end, it was the fact that Mrs. Cassidy was with child that saved her from a verdict of murder in the first degree, a judgment that carried the death penalty for both men and women alike. As an act of mercy, a lesser charge was issued, one that spared her life but now made her Misthaven Penitentiary’s problem to contend with, and more specifically, the Captain of the Guard charged with keeping order within its walls.
A/N: Thank you all for liking, reblogging, and commenting! Your encouragement means the world to me and I am so thrilled at the response this is getting. I hope you continue to enjoy it. Also, sorry this update is a day late. It was a busy weekend.
Thanks to my amazing betas, @snowbellewells and @kmomof4. Also, shout out to @sotangledupinit for the assist in defringing (there, @teamhook, is that better?) Killian for the art.
Rated T-M (for themes, mentions of abuse, murder, and attempted assault) / Available on ao3 and ff.net / buy me a coffee / add to tag list
“You cannot be bloody serious!” Killian was getting rather tired of saying that to Liam, so he could only imagine his older brother was tired of hearing it.
“I understand and share your outrage, Killian,” Liam said, holding his hands up in an effort to calm Killian’s ire, “but we cannot afford to lose Walsh at this time.”
Killian’s knuckles grew white from the way he gripped the back of the chair he was bracing himself on. “The man defied your orders. His intentions towards Mrs. Cassidy–”
“Were reprehensible,” Liam acknowledged. “But technically, as he did not enter her cell, Walsh did not disobey my direct order.”
Killian couldn’t believe what he was hearing, that his brother would brush aside the man’s insubordination and completely ignore the threat he posed to one of their inmates. From the way Liam sighed and scrubbed his hand across his jaw, Killian knew his shock and disappointment were evident upon his face.
“We are severely short staffed, little brother,” Liam lamented. “Losing Walsh would put us below the bare minimum we would need to run a full rotation whilst those who come off the nightshift reacclimate, to say nothing of what we would do should one of our number fall ill for any amount of time. I know the man must receive punishment for his actions, and he will, but we cannot lose–”
“Then I’ll remain on night shift indefinitely,” Killian offered.
“If the issue is covering shifts while guards transition off of nights and back onto days, then I shall remain on night shift until a suitable replacement can be trained to fill Walsh’s position.”
It was now Liam’s turn to appear utterly gobsmacked. “That could take months.”
“If that’s what it takes to keep a man like Walsh away from Swan, then so be it,” Killian affirmed, finally dropping into the chair in front of Liam’s desk. Resting his elbow on the arm of the seat, he reached up to pinch the bridge of his nose and confessed, “I’d rather be on nights anyway. It’s when she’s most vulnerable.”
Killian snapped his head up to meet the confused gaze of his brother. “It’s, uh… her maiden name. Miss Swan.” Killian shifted uncomfortably in his seat as Liam’s eyes narrowed. “She abhors being called Mrs. Cassidy, and seeing as how you’ve forbidden us from using her given name, I thought it a fair compromise.”
Liam hummed while continuing to scrutinize Killian with his all-seeing gaze, as the men had termed it.
“Be careful, little brother,” Liam warned. “Do not allow this woman to cloud your judgment.”
