Nick’s POV

Months had rotted away since they locked me up in this concrete hellhole. All because some corrupt judge decided to side with that bitch Gemma and convict me of breaking and entering after I tried to get what was rightfully mine from her apartment. One moment of bad timing cost me my clean record and my freedom. My court-appointed attorney kept reminding me that Gemma had Thorne family lawyers working the case - those bloodsucking legal sharks who served the mafia families downtown. They made sure I got the maximum sentence.

Those damn love letters I’d been sending her from inside kept getting intercepted by the guards and used against me in appeals. The warden made it clear that my correspondence was being monitored, making it nearly impossible to reach her the way I needed to. I had to find another way to get a cell phone, though contraband like that cost serious money behind bars. Gi would help me though - she’d proven her loyalty since the day I arrived.

Shortly after my incarceration, I’d met Stevie, a wiry con man who quickly became my closest ally in this cage. He explained that surviving on the inside meant having reliable people working for you on the outside. Having no family worth trusting, I was grateful when he introduced me to his sister Gi during visiting hours. She turned out to be everything I needed - handling my requests without asking questions, smuggling in small favors, and never missing a single visitation day. Speaking of which, here she came now, her heels clicking across the worn linoleum.

"I’m here, baby!" Gi called out, her throaty laughter echoing through the visiting room as she tossed her bleached hair over her leather jacket. Everything about her screamed street tough - the kind of woman who could navigate both sides of the law.

"My beautiful Gi! How’s my girl doing out there?" I greeted her with the most passionate kiss the guards would allow. She was attractive in a dangerous way, and we’d developed quite the understanding during our months of correspondence.

"When you start with that sweet talk, I know you need something heavy," she said with a knowing smirk, her dark eyes studying my face. "Just spit it out, Nick. We both know this isn’t a social call."

"That useless public defender they stuck me with showed up this week," I confided, leaning closer across the metal table.

"Oh yeah? What did that spineless piece of garbage have to say this time?"

"Says I need to stop sending letters to Gemma - claims it’s screwing up my chances for early release. According to him, if I want him to negotiate a plea reduction, I need to keep my mouth shut and play the reformed convict."

"And what’s your real plan?" she asked, her voice dropping to a whisper that wouldn’t carry to the guards stationed around the room.

"I need a burner phone. I know which guards can be bought and how the system works in here, but the phones don’t come cheap. Can you front me the cash for that kind of purchase?"

"That depends entirely on something else. My brother Stevie wanted me to confirm that your business arrangement with him is still solid. He’s counting on your release, so maybe laying low with those letters actually makes sense. Save your real revenge for when you’re back on the streets where you can handle things properly." Gi’s suggestion had merit, but the thought of Gemma living peacefully while I rotted in here made my blood boil.

Stevie’s brother ran a mid-level drug operation out of the old warehouse district - nothing that would attract Thorne family attention, but profitable enough to need professional financial management. He needed someone with accounting skills to clean his money and manage his books, and with my business degree, he wanted me running his finances the moment I walked free. The offer was tempting since I’d been blacklisted from legitimate employment anyway, and his compensation package was more than generous.

"Tell Stevie it’s a done deal! The second I’m released, I’ll head straight to his operation and take over everything financial. He won’t have to worry about the IRS or rival crews tracking his cash flow," I assured her, knowing this partnership would give me the resources I needed for bigger plans.

"Perfect! Then we can definitely arrange your phone situation. Give me the specifics of what model you need and which guard you’re planning to work with, and you’ll have it soon. Just don’t get careless and let them find it during shakedowns, or you can kiss early parole goodbye. That would seriously mess up Stevie’s timeline for expansion," she warned.

"Don’t worry about that - I’ve already arranged for one of the trustees to take the fall if anything gets discovered during cell searches. I’ve got this whole thing mapped out," I explained, feeling proud of how I’d learned to work the prison system.

"Look at you, getting smart about how things work in here! I’m impressed with this new strategic side of you. Now, let me fill you in on some concerns Stevie has about territorial disputes with the Dominican crews. He wants your opinion on whether it’s worth the risk to expand into their neighborhood..."

Gi proved her reliability better than I’d even hoped - shortly after our visit, I had a working smartphone hidden in my mattress. As I’d expected, that Thorne family whore Gemma had changed her number, so I had Gi start working her street contacts to track down the new information. I had complete confidence in Gi’s network; she had connections throughout the city’s underworld who could find anyone.

All I needed now was patience and careful planning. Soon I would make Gemma’s life a living nightmare until she regretted the day she chose those mafia bastards over me.

The guards thought these concrete walls could contain my rage, but they had no idea what was coming for her.