CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND SEVENTY SIX – RAINY DAYS

Over the next few days, she retreated into a cocoon of depression not unlike poor Ling Ling's state. She went through the regimented motions of meals, showers, and yard time like a haunted revenant. At night, tucked away on her perpetually damp bunk, she would dissolve into deep, keening sobs that felt like they would literally tear her apart from the inside. How had her life fallen to such unimaginable depths? Just a few short months ago, she had been a promising young professional embarking on her dream career path. She had friends, hobbies, and the opportunity to leave an impact on the world. But now, she was a reviled and shunned criminal - an outcast with a permanently sullied record, forced to rely on an overwhelmed public defender who clearly viewed her as just another open and shut case file. She had never felt more hopeless and alone. Then, shortly after her meeting with Rossen, another cataclysmic wrecking ball came crashing through what remained of Kayla's tenuously per