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Fate's Bitch	By : Saoirse Category: G through L > Longest Yard, The Views: 5843 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own The Longest Yard, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 1-Chapter One
- 2-Chapter Two
- 1
- 2
�� Chapter
Two

�� Hazen and Dandridge accompanied
Joanna to the infirmary; she took a brief walking tour on her own surveying
everything. Stainless steel, white tiles, glass fronted metal cabinets, new Dell computer terminals and everything
was antiseptic as a whistle. Allenville�s infirmary in addition to its
examination room and surgery had an x-ray room, pharmacy and morgue. The
medical archives however were in the process of getting an update; a computer
system was being installed and all of the files were still in the subterranean
basement. Joanna�s office stuck in a corner of the examination room was not
spacious but surprisingly comfortable, a brown leather sofa, a glass topped
cambered desk where her new computer sat and a picture window overlooking the
prison�s garden. Joanna drew the blinds and nodded.
�� I sincerely hope everything is to
your liking, Doctor.� Dandridge said in that ingratiating saccharine tone of
his.
�� It is Mr. Dandridge.� Joanna
nodded. Dandridge and Hazen followed her back out into the infirmary and she
saw six men and women assembled there.
�� Dr. Van Arsdale, I�d like to
introduce you to your staff.� A pleasantly plump attractive black woman with
long glossy curls wearing a lab coat over her maroon trousers and white shirt
scrubs with large braided hoop earrings and a heavy, stylized gold cross on her
bosom shook Joanna�s hand.
�� Tanesha Williams, trauma specialist
nurse.�
�� Hello Tanesha.� Joanna said. Next
to her stood a white man that looked like he should be on an NBA court in green
scrubs.
�� Max Kantrowitz, EMT but everyone
calls me Tiny.�
�� I could see why.� Joanna�s comment
elicited a laugh from everyone. A young black man stood beside Tiny with a
diamond stud in his right ear and tattoos in Gothic font reading �respect� on
his right forearm and �justice� on his left also dressed in green scrubs and
skull cap.
�� Tyrell Evers,
internist.�
�� Fresh out the can, huh Tyrell?�
Joanna said.
�� Yes ma�am.� Tyrell smiled. A
Hispanic man with Mayan silver and maroon beads on a black leather thong around
his neck and an African-patterned skull cap in green scrubs shook Joanna�s
hand.
�� Qu� Pasa Vasquez,
RN and licensed physiotherapist.�
�� What�s up, Qu� Pasa?� Joanna said.
A brunette with her hair in a messy bun that stood about Joanna�s height also
in green scrubs, Nike crosstrainers
with a lab coat was next.
�� Annette Calamari, RN.� She
introduced herself in a thick Brooklynese accent. And at the end of the line
stood a Mexican woman with a lot of attitude, a long, bleached fly-straight
ponytail pulled up at the top of her head with glossy pink lips, acrylic
magenta nails and a gold nameplate that glittered with diamonds on a
hugs-and-kisses chain in green scrubs.
�� Carmen Jimenez, RN. And Doc, don�t
take shit from anybody here.� A piece of advice Joanna long resolved to follow
the minutes she saw Knauer.
�� Doctor.�
It was Dandridge again, was he a permanent fixture here? Joanna turned and saw
Hazen holding up a lab coat on a hangar. On the left breast in dark blue
embroidery was �Joanna Van Arsdale, MD Allenville Federal Penitentiary.� And
clipped to her right breast pocket was her laminated ID card, her photo from
her old hospital ID was reused. There was a little applause and despite
everything Joanna blushed.
�� Well,� Hazen clapped his hands, �since
today is your first day, I�ll leave you to it, Doctor. Errol.�
Hazen gestured for Dandridge to follow him, Joanna graciously walked them
outside. �Oh Doctor, one more thing.� Hazen said.
�� Yes, warden?�
Joanna asked.
�� Now in my prison we embrace a strong
ethic of teamwork and to get along, you have to go along. Just keep that in
mind.� Joanna didn�t miss the suggestion of a threat in there. Any and all notions of individuality was tabooed. Hazen
waited until he was at the end of the corridor looking as if he were waiting
for the service elevator, Dandridge watched him flip open his Sprint phone. Hazen speedialed his
office but the phone rang a couple more times than he liked. His secretary,
Lynette, a woman that had been in Allenville since his guard days drove her
employers up the wall but could never bring themselves to fire her since she
did the shitjobs with a smile on her face. She sat at her desk with her feet up
in a positively loud lavender dress, white French heeled shoes and her dyed
auburn hair piled up into an absurd beehive with a copy of Sports Illustrated open on her lap. It had the �Ten Legendary
Hockey Goons� feature.
�� The Enforcer�� Lynette whispered
flicking out her tongue at a black and white photo of Gordie Howe. It then
registered that her phone was ringing. She was so startled that she fell out of
her chair and scrambled to answer it while sprawled on the floor, skirt over
her head with her bloomers for the world to see. �Warden
Hazen�s office.� She drawled in a nasally voice.
�� Lynette!� Hazen bellowed.
�� Warden Hazen!� Lynette tousled to
get back up on her chair. �I�m so sorry sir! I was so caught up in the
collatin� an� all�� Hazen sighed the sigh of the long
suffering on the other end.
�� Never mind that now! Relay a
message to Captain Knauer.� Lynette picked up a pencil from the knocked over
cup on her desk.
�� Ready sir.�
�� Tell Captain Knauer to report to my
office when he is done with his ablutions.�
�� Yes sir.� Lynette scrawled out the
message as best she could and hung up momentarily before speedialing Knauer�s
number. A series of cellblocks that was no longer viable at the corner of the
prison facing the football field taking up two floors were gutted out and
reconstructed for the football team. On the bottom floor were the locker room
and showers. The team�s little brainstorming corner outfitted with a
chalkboard, 20� inch TV, VCR/DVD player, a couple of brown leather chairs and
sofas and a library of their past games. On the top floor was their clubhouse,
it was painted the team colors and sported the Allenville Guardsmen logo
everywhere. It was also their private gym, had a fully stocked kitchen, big
screen TV/DVD player, a deep blue leather sectional
and recliners, stereo system, satellite cable, Xbox, Playstation2, billiards,
foosball, ping pong and pinball. The game and DVD library took up a whole
bookcase on one wall, all games were rated M and up, Grand Theft Auto being a favorite. All the movies were action,
martial arts and comedy titles with a healthy smattering of porn. Captain
Knauer�s office was also there, but it was off-limits to everyone and that door
was always locked.
�� Downstairs in the locker room where
the rock music was always blasting on the Bose,
the team was stripping down, washing up and getting ready for the next shift.
Dunham played air guitar to Ace Frehley�s Do
Ya as some of the guards joined in on the chorus.

�� Do
ya do ya
�� Want
my love
�� Woman
��
�� Do
ya do ya
�� Want
my face
�� I
need it
��
�� Do
ya do ya
�� Want
my mind
�� I�m
sayin�
��
�� Do
ya do ya
�� Want
my love �

�� Knauer was at his cubbyhole peeling
off his sweatbands when his black Motorola Razr
went off. The only reason why he heard it was because he was so close to
it. He hit the TALK button, brought it to his ear and pressed his knuckle into
his other ear moving away from the noise.
�� What is it?!� Knauer shouted over
the din. Lynette knew he was still in the locker room and used the speaker
phone to prevent from going deaf.
�� Captain Knauer, this is Warden
Hazen�s secretary.�
�� Yeah I know Lynette. What is it?�
�� The warden will see you when you
are finished with your ablutions.�
�� Thank you Lynette.� Knauer clapped
his phone shut.

-------------

��
�� Lynette was on the phone with her
friend Gladys reporting the latest jailhouse gossip when Knauer walked in. She
silently indicated for him to go right into Hazen�s office. Knauer gently
rapped on the door�s glass pane.
�� Enter!� Was
Hazen�s muffled reply.
�� Warden.�
Knauer said stepping into the office.
�� Captain Knauer
would you please shut those blinds?� Hazen said not once turning away
from the window flanking the right of his desk over looking the football field.
Knauer slid the blinds to the window facing Lynette�s office since she knew the
topic of their meeting would be the new doctor. The icy breath from the central
air conditioning blew in from the vents close to the ceiling evaporating the
thin sheen of water on Knauer�s skin from his shower, although he couldn�t say
the same for the sweat on Dandridge seated at the little conference table
stuffing his bloated face with walnut scones washing them down with Brazilian
coffee from a silver pot. Knauer was a good soldier and trained himself to
conceal the contempt he held for the piggish man and simply stood at attention
with his hands behind his back.
�� You must be ravenous Captain,
please take a seat and help yourself.� Hazen said.
�� Thank you sir.�
Knauer sat at the conference table and poured himself coffee into a china cup
with gold Greek key patterns and took a small plate from the short stack on the
silver tray and piled it with a few of the lower calorie Lu chocolate biscuits. For a few minutes Knauer sat enjoying his
snack ignoring Dandridge waiting for Hazen to speak, he knew the old man was
threatened by control loss because Joanna was a headstrong woman. And now the
gray-haired bastard was going to kiss his ass (in his own little way) to see if
his Captain could rectify this. Hazen�s coffee steamed but sat untouched on the
little walnut table under the window, one of the warden�s hands rested on the
wings of the heavy oak bald eagle. Hazen sighed
picking up his cup delicately by the saucer and set it on the conference table
and took the empty seat beside Dandridge. He smoothed out a cloth napkin on his
lap and split apart a scone to butter it.
�� Just when I thought I had all this
shit figured out,� Hazen said addressing no one in particular. Knauer sat back
in his seat quietly. �Women are truly fickle, Dandridge.� Hazen didn�t wait for
a response. �They want rich men; we gave �em rich men. Then they themselves
wanted to be rich, okay fine. Then they want the vote, so we gave them that
too. College, the military, civil servants, church leaders- everything!� He put
down his buttered scone and leaned forward to look into Knauer�s blue eyes. �So
tell me why, Captain, does a debutante from the upper echelons of Jacksonville
society who could whup the ass of any dumb whore from Grosse Point kick off her glass slippers to go hold the hands of
shot up gangbanging niggers in East L.A.?�
�� Knauer shrugged his broad shoulders.
�Joanna has always had this need to prove herself
capable of doing things on her own.� Hazen grasped the edge of the table with
both hands leaning closer into Knauer.
�� Do you believe she will pose a
problem?�
�� I don�t believe so, no sir.� Knauer
said matter of factly.�
�� How can you be certain?�
�� Because I will
make sure of it.� Hazen sat back in his seat and exhaled a long breath
through his nostrils and rested his folded hands on his abdomen. That was the
way things worked in Allenville, no orders were given in specific wording, just
the suggestion when reading between the lines.
�� And just how, Captain Knauer, will
you make sure of it?� The right side of Knauer�s mouth pulled up in a smirk.
�� Joanna just didn�t take the
Hippocratic Oath, warden, she believes
in it down to her very soul. She�ll fall in line as long as no one gets hurt.�
Hazen tilted his chin upward gazing at the ceiling, but saw nothing but
limitless skies. Three years since their last All Prison League Championship, three
years. This doctor just might be his team�s Goddess of Victory, provided she
didn�t do anything stupid.
�� I�m giving you- and your men- a lot
of latitude here Captain. Don�t fuck it up.� Knauer took that as his cue (and
one more biscuit for the road) and got up to leave.
�� Yes sir.��

-------------

�� A week went by without incident from
the guards and she hadn�t seen any of the familiar ones. But Joanna didn�t let
any of her defenses down since the psychos were a bit like rattle snakes,
watching their prey to strike at the opportune moment. Joanna hadn�t needed to
leave the infirmary once to care for any of the inmates since they came to her
(with the accompaniment of an unknown guard who blocked the door) for minor
problems- bruises, cuts, cigarette burns and the like. Joanna was also pleased
to discover the inmate who had maintenance detail on her floor was Allenville�s
infamous smuggler, Caretaker Farrell, a wiry black man with a thin beard, a
ready smile and a crafty glitter in his eye easily identifiable by the
cigarette kept behind his right ear at all times. He was a good source of
information and dirty gossip on the guards and Warden Hazen. All she had to do
was turn a blind eye to his �grocery shopping� in the pharmacy; she didn�t give
a shit anyway. Caretaker was currently regaling Joanna with one of his clashes
with Dunham.
�� So I figured if I couldn�t outrun
his stick, I�d out-black him for calling me �Mr. Bo Jangles� and educate him on
Sammy�s musical career.� Caretaker said.
�� Dunham never took to higher
education, Caretaker. When we were in Miami U, the bald dumbshit used his class
time to take naps.� Caretaker leaned on his mopstick, propping an arm on the
end of it.
�� Didn�t he ever have hair?� Joanna
laughed and was about to respond when the loud pumping of Calamari�s breath interrupted them and she flounced in.
�� Doc! We
got a hot one on the outside!� The infirmary was mobilizing for their first
major call out in the general population.
�� Where is it?� Joanna asked.
�� Cellblock E. There was an
explosion.� Calamari said helping Tiny pull the gurney
together.
�� And that would be Spooky.�
Caretaker informed them. �He�s been makin� his homebrewed iced tea in the
toilet again. I told him to keep away from that anti-freeze but Lord knows
nobody listens to me!�
�� Joanna, Tanesha, Tiny and Calamari
rushed out with the gurney to the service elevator where they were met by Guard
Hock shouting prison jargon into his walkie-talkie. He waved them in and hit
the emergency button to bypass the other floors to get to Cellblock E. Inmates
gathered on the main floor and clustered on the landings in front of their open
cells, but the guards kept the area clear surrounding Spooky�s cell. Guard
Webster was trying to subdue a heavyset white inmate who was having fits on the
floor of his cell, his meaty hands covering his face.
�� Outta the way!
Where�s the prisoner?!� Joanna bellowed, and the guards gave her and her people
a wide berth to fit the gurney in. Webster shifted to the side as best as he
could as Calamari and Tiny collapsed the gurney as the three tried to get
Spooky mounted. Joanna saw the steel toilet sizzle and smoke; shards of it were
torn out and lodged into the concrete walls and ceiling.
�� We�ve got second degree burns
here!� Tanesha reported. Spooky�s red and black-ringed burns on his face oozed
blood and fluid. It was too early to tell if there was eye damage. They tore
open gauze, set up IVs and checked his vitals. Outside Knauer sinuously
strutted in followed by his favorite foursome, Dunham, Lambert, Garner and
Engleheart. Knauer surveyed the state of things and was not pleased.
�� Get this cellblock on lockdown.� He
calmly ordered his offensive unit.
�� Back to your cells
shitheads!� Garner shouted.
�� Y�all are on 24-hour lockdown!�
Dunham stated with a smug grin on his face.
�� Hey that�s bullshit, man! We didn�t do nothin�!� A spastic mental case named Brucie
yelled. He was transferred from the West Texas Mental Institution to Allenville
because of the limited number of beds. Knauer grinned and moseyed over to
Brucie who glared at the Captain with wily brown eyes. And quick as lightning
Knauer took Brucie down with his billyclub. He circled Brucie on his polished
boots and flashed a pearly white smile, squatting down and leveled Brucie�s
chin with the end of his billyclub to meet his menacing glare.
�� But you will be going to the
hotbox.�
�� Inmates jeered and carried on;
Webster sidled out of the cell now needed for crowd control. The force of their
jumping and screaming shook the prison down to its foundation and Joanna saw
dust trickle down from the ceiling.
�� The hell�s goin� on?!�
�� Leave it alone, Doctor.� Tanesha
said with worry in her eyes. Joanna tossed her stethoscope aside and ran out of
the cell to be greeted with a melee of guards beating prisoners with their
sticks and armed guards with their weapons to their shoulders ready to fire
when necessary. Joanna was horrified to see Brian beating a man who was curled
up in the fetal position.
�� STOP IT! STOP IT NOW!!!!� Inmates
on the upper levels saw Joanna screaming just stopped out of shock and like a
ripple effect everyone stopped. �What�re you doing?!!! You can�t put this
entire cellblock on lockdown! No one�s to blame but Spooky! Are you insane?!!!�
Inside Spooky�s cell the medical team looked at one another with terrified
expressions and Tiny crawled under the bunk. It was so silent; a pin drop in
Madagascar could be heard. Joanna�s breasts heaved and she waited for something-
anything- to happen. And something
did, the guards burst out into hearty bellylaughs.
�� Didn�t I tell ya she was funny?!�
Lambert smacked Garner�s arm. Garner strode up to Joanna; they all wore their
gold-rimmed wire frame shades that were part of the officer�s standard kit.
�� Well, ain�t she
buh-you-tuh-ful.� Garner lay his hands flat on his haunches and squatted down
until he was eyelevel with Joanna. �Well now, I guess you�d be that Amnesty
International shit, because you know all
�bout those kinds of places with them names I just don�t give a rat�s ass �bout
correctly pronouncin�� �cause they�re too busy infectin� us with
some un-American bullshit.� Harrumphs rippled from the guards
agreeing with Garner�s every ignorant accusation. �Now I don�t know if
y�all have been informed Doctor, but this is Texas. An� we don�t put up with
that �round here.� Garner rested his billyclub on his massive shoulder sweeping
past Joanna and slapped her on the ass. Joanna jumped from the impact but made
no noise and desperately tried to keep her expression neutral. She wasn�t about
to give any of them the satisfaction
of seeing her angry.
�� Now hold up Garner, that ain�t very
fair.� Knauer stood behind Joanna cutting an imposing shadow on the floor and
wall, completely blotting out hers. �I think what we�ve got here is an
old-fashioned misunderstanding. What Joanna here doesn�t quite understand is,�
and Knauer curled a finger under her chin to turn her head in his direction,
�Allenville is my prison. And everyone here does exactly as I say. And that
includes you, darlin�.� Joanna smacked Knauer�s hand away although she knew
that he really pulled his hand back.
�� Who in hell are you referring to as
�darling�, Captain Knauer?� Joanna spun on her pretty heels and stormed off
following the gurney holding Spooky�s semi-conscious body. And that was the
first down. Knauer knew Joanna�s love of professionalism, and since they had
been �off� for the last 20 years she was eager to throw her title in his face
and make sure he used it. Well, that wasn�t in his plays.

-------------

�� The next day Spooky was laid up in
intensive care but had been stabilized. Joanna knew she would have to get a
specialist to see if there had been eye damage. She was just concerned that
Hazen wouldn�t permit it. What she also needed was access to MRI and CAT scans,
and for that prisoners would have to leave the facility. Joanna resolved to
worry about that when the time came. She came out of her office and approached
Tanesha with a file folder.
�� Tanesha, would you please get these
down to the archives?�
�� Yes doctor.� Tanesha said.
�� Thank you.� Just as Tanesha was
about to walk out the door it burst open and in ran six prison drag queens
screaming and jumping around like they were dancing on hot coals waving their
makeshift skirts. Joanna began shouting over them to try containing the
situation. �LADIES! LADIES!! SHUT THE FUCK UP!!!!� The
six immediately hushed. �Let us comport ourselves here!� They still looked
fidgety but remained quiet because they were scared of Joanna. �This had better
be a real emergency and not the rerun of the final Melrose episode!� They looked at one another whimpering. �Well?�
Joanna asked. �What�s happened, ladies? Is someone dead?� Joanna shrugged her
shoulders and was being sarcastic, but the queens exchanged wary looks.
�� Well you see, Doctor Lady�� The
head queen, a black man with a slight paunch wearing a sleeveless tie top made
from the inmate kit.
�� Fifteen minutes later Joanna was in
the prison laundry, a steamy, hot subterranean level where linens, towels, prison
uniforms, dishrags and aprons from the kitchen detail were washed. �I spoke too
damn soon.� Joanna groaned. A corpse slung over one of the canvas bins stabbed
in the back with a crude stabbing weapon jutting out of him. �What do we got, Qu� Pasa? Did rigor set in?� Qu� Pasa squatting in the
bin with a thermometer stood up.
�� That�s a negative. This one cashed
his chips in fairly recently.� He picked up one of the arms and it fell with a
rubbery slap.
�� Time of death�
ballpark estimate?� Joanna asked rubbing her eyes with her thumb and
index finger.
�� 13:20 good?�
�� Sounds about
right. Get Tiny and Tyrell and bag him.�
�� You�re the boss.� Qu� Pasa got on
his cell phone.
�� I gotta see Hazen, he�s gotta fill
me in on the procedure.� The queens clustered behind Joanna sniffing into Kleenexes. �
�� Ooh!� The head queen squealed. �Are
those Gucci�s?� He pointed to
Joanna�s shoes.

-------------

�� Joanna knocked on Lynette�s open
door and the harebrained secretary waved her in and put Gladys on hold. �Hello
there honey!� Lynette beamed. �I didn�t get a chance
to talk to you; y�all look so different up close!�
�� Thank you Lynette. Listen, I need
to speak to the warden.�
�� Do y�all have an appointment?
Warden Hazen�s in a meetin� right now.�
�� No, this is an emergency. There�s
been a homicide.� Joanna explained.
�� Awww.� Lynette tutted. While she was sympathetic she wasn�t
surprised. �Warden Hazen?� She buzzed him over the intercom.
�� What is it Lynette?� Hazen groaned
exhaustedly, Joanna assumed that Lynette was the sort of secretary that was
taxing on energy.
�� Dr. Van Arsdale is here. There�s
been a� a death.�
�� Oh sweet Jesus� send her in.�
�� Y�all can go in.� Lynette spied
Joanna�s shoes. �Are those Gucci�s?�
Joanna just smiled and went into Hazen�s office.
�� Warden Hazen?� Joanna shut the door
behind her but when she turned round she saw Knauer seated across Hazen�s desk,
Dandridge at his place of honor at the conference table with a glass of
lemonade. She and Brian shared a glance, but Joanna was certain of the
neutrality of her expression. �Warden Hazen, I apologize for the interruption.�
Joanna confidently strode up to the desk ignoring Brian completely. Dandridge
watched carefully with eyebrows raised as though this was a scene in a soap
opera. Old lovers, new enemies.
�� Have a seat Doctor.� Hazen offered
her.
�� Thank you, I�m fine. I�ll cut right
to the chase; a body was found in the laundry.� Joanna saw Hazen�s face pull
tight.
�� Isn�t that the eighth one in last
two months?� Dandridge asked clearly not interested in minding his own business.
�� Ninth.� Knauer corrected him.
�� How long ago, Doctor?� Hazen asked
pinching the sinus cluster above his nose.
�� Just a few hours ago, 13:20. Rigor
mortis hasn�t set in. My people have already transferred the body up to the
morgue.�
�� Why wasn�t this brought to the
attention to my guards� Joanna?� Knauer asked
deliberately calling her by her name.
�� Because
your guards are animals, Brian! Joanna silently flipped open her metal
clipboard. �Six distraught inmates who discovered the body came to my infirmary
and reported it to me.�
�� Only to you?�
Knauer asked, voice dripping with suspicion.
�� Apparently so.�
Joanna shrugged her shoulders.
�� Did you ID the inmate, Doctor?�
Hazen asked.
�� The ID number on the uniform was
42710.�
�� Inmate Vernon
Mallory.� Knauer said. �Another drug deal gone bad,
I reckon.� Knauer rose up off the chair and dusted off his shoulder.
�� I
reckon?� Joanna couldn�t help but crook an eyebrow at the local idiom. You sound like a real shitkicker now, don�t
you Brian?
�� I told him, cuttin� that dope with
bleach will get �im trouble. Especially if the junkie happens
to be somebody�s bitch.� Knauer spoke as though we was
talking about last week�s Packers-Cowboys game, then again he�d been at the job
probably as long as they�d been apart.
�� I�ll get started on the autopsy,
warden.� Joanna was about to leave when Hazen stopped her.
�� That won�t be necessary doctor.�
Hazen waved her off. �Captain Knauer will you take Dr. Van Arsdale down to-�
�� Wait a second!� Joanna was
incredulous. Hazen and Knauer looked at her as if she was a child interrupting
her mother�s Sunday afternoon social over coffee spewing nonsense over gators
in the basement.
�� Yes, Dr. Van Arsdale?� Hazen asked
reproachfully.
�� Joanna stepped closer to Hazen�s
desk. �I don�t have to remind you warden that Texas state law directs the
attending physician- me- to perform
an autopsy to determine cause of death.� Joanna laid her hands on the warden�s
desk ledge. �A crime has been committed here, Warden Hazen.� Hazen grinned tightly;
his awe coincided with his ire at Joanna�s mettle. She stood straight feeling
as though she was slightly out of bounds with her physical reaction. But if she
got emotional, she had every right to be. �If you doubt my ability Warden
Hazen, I have performed a number of postmortems in my former position. I may
not be Los Angeles County�s ME, but it�s pretty standard.�
�� I don�t doubt your ability,
Doctor.� Hazen said.
�� That is comforting sir.
Nevertheless I am uncomfortable signing the death certificate.�
�� Well Joanna, why don�t you tell me
what I can do to make you feel more comfortable?� Knauer said with a taunting
smile on his face. Joanna�s hackles rose but she resisted glaring at him.
�� Did you do a preliminary
examination of the body, Dr. Van Arsdale?� Hazen asked.
�� I did.� Joanna said.
�� What were your findings?�
�� Joanna consulted her clipboard. �A
weapon roughly eighteen inches in length was used to stab Mr. Mallory in the
back. It was constructed from a pried off length of steel- possibly from a bunk-
that was sharpened, two pieces of wood were affixed at the end of it bolted
together with an epoxy sealant. When I extricated the weapon from Mr. Mallory I
could tell that aside from his blood the weapon was immaculate. Whether or not
it has prints or other DNA has yet to be determined, but this apparently was a
one-off job with an intentionally disposable weapon. The entry wound on Mr.
Mallory,� Joanna approached Knauer, put her hands on his shoulders and giving
him the eye that plainly stated, �Turn around Brian� to which he complied after
cocking a strawberry-blonde eyebrow, �was found to be approximately�� Joanna
trailed a pair of fingers down Knauer�s spine. �Here!� Joanna clapped her fist
on Knauer�s back. He rolled his shoulders feeling one of the kinks flatten,
Joanna used to give him one hell of a rubdown after particularly brutal
practices. �C7 of the cervical vertebra. If my
deduction is correct, then the perp severed the subclavian artery cleanly
through.� Knauer turned around letting Joanna continue to use him as a
demonstration tool. He was kind of enjoying it anyway. �The subclavian artery
delivers oxygenated blood to the head and arms. Now the stab wound was on the
left side which means the left subclavian was more than likely perforated and
that comes off directly from the arch of the aorta. The aorta is our largest
artery located in the heart�s left ventricle that delivers blood throughout our
bodies. You cut that off, it�s all over.�
�� So what you�re saying to me that
you are of the opinion more than likely Mallory was killed because of a stab
wound to the� subclavian artery. Have I got the lingo correctly?� Hazen asked
her.
�� You are correct sir. I am basing it
on other cases I have seen these in similar circumstances.� Joanna said.
�� Ah ha!�
Hazen said raising a finger. �So you admit that other patients succumb to this
type of injury before any autopsy was performed.� What the hell?! Hazen was
clearly twisting her words around to make it seem like she was caught in a lie.
Joanna saw the eye movements between Knauer and Hazen, their little word play
scheme was tripping her up nicely.
�� No, no warden, you�re making it
seem that I�m trying to pull a fast one on you. What I meant was in the varying
circumstances where these types of injuries occur death is a likely result.�
Joanna said breathlessly and unconvinced that she got her point across.
�� I thought you said �similar�?�
Hazen pointed out.
�� Similar what?�
Joanna asked blinking a bit too rapidly.
�� Similar
circumstances.�
�� Yes! That�s what I meant, similar
circumstances.�
�� But if you meant similar, why did
you say varying?� Hazen smiled triumphantly. Now Joanna was completely thrown
off track and unsure if she should say another word. She decided on a new tack.
�� Okay� medicine,� Joanna began, �can
be a precarious art. There are so many types of equations, and you can come up
with the same answer through different variables when applied.�
�� I see.� Hazen said patronizingly.
�� Which is why I
need to do this autopsy to see what kind of variables they were.�
�� Doctor,� Hazen chuckled, �I think
you are too modest, I trust your expert opinion.�
�� But warden, an autopsy really is a
non-issue even in these matters. It�s just done, no questions asked.� Joanna
said.
�� In these matters,� Hazen said, �it�s just a nicety. Something that we
feel is a waste of time, and tax dollars.� The writing between the lines
couldn�t have been clearer: It�s a convict. Who gives a shit?
�� I can�t circumvent the law.� Joanna
said. Hazen looked at Joanna very carefully and deliberately waited a moment�s
pause before making his reply.
�� Now that�s a very interesting thing
for you to say doctor. Very interesting.� Now Joanna was apprehensive because she
was clueless as to what he was implying. �Captain Knauer, will you please take
Dr. Van Arsdale down to your office and fill out the necessary paperwork,
please?�
�� Yes sir.� Knauer gingerly clasped
the crook of Joanna�s elbow and guided her to the door. �C�mon sugarplum��
Joanna took one last glance at the warden who still had that condescending grin
on his face before Knauer led her from the office. Outside Joanna ripped her
arm from Brian�s grasp and with hard taps of her heels she walked ahead of him
to the elevator putting enough space between them. Brian kept his distance, but
that only made Joanna more suspicious and when the elevator doors slid apart
they silently boarded the car.
�� Joanna didn�t lose, but it was being
made apparent that she�d better get used to it and quick. She was so wrapped up
in trying to figure out where the loopholes might be she didn�t see Brian slam
the emergency button stopping the car and practically pile drove her into the
wall, smothering her with his lips. Joanna was in such shock that for a moment
she wasn�t quite sure what Brian was doing until he pried open her mouth with
his tongue. Brian�s kisses were sucking and moist, just like she remembered
them, but as she attempted to shove him away this time Joanna didn�t take into
consideration the strength he possessed (even at his age) to propel a line
drive he used elsewhere. And he held both her wrists ensuring that this time
she wasn�t going anywhere. Brian broke away only to come up for air, Joanna was
taking long, hungry gulps of it.
�� Baby I love how you bite and
scratch in an argument! Especially when you�re gonna lose.� Brian said.
�� Don�t� think� I wouldn�t scratch�
you� Captain Knauer!� Joanna panted.
�� Oh can we cut the Captain/Doctor
bullshit, honey?� Brian whined. He always whined on the quiet. �I love what you
have on.� He looked her up and down something feral. Her skirt was black
velvet, a black silk camisole and over it was an untucked sheer white blouse
under her lab coat. �All see-through and sexy��
�� Brian!� Joanna braced herself when
he lowered his head into her neck.
�� You smell so good baby�� Joanna
whimpered when she felt his teeth sink into her flesh. It wasn�t deep enough to
bleed, but it smarted. Brian sucked loudly on the fresh bite mark; his
intention was to leave a hickey. Joanna goggled when she saw the security
camera in the corner of the elevator ceiling; she could imagine the show they
were putting on for the guards in the monitor room. They were probably making
popcorn by now. Joanna felt the air in her lungs freeze ice cold when Brian
released her wrists to slide his hands up the front of her blouse and unbutton
it. Joanna�s eyes trailed down to their feet and knew she only had one shot.
Tensing her fingers against the warm steel wall anchoring herself
down as best as she could she waited until Brian�s breathing got labored, he
always got so worked up before sex. When his breathing picked up speed as he
fondled her lovingly, it took every ounce of self-control in Joanna to block
out her muscle memory in order to raise her foot. She lashed out and with a well
placed kick she jammed her spike heel into his ankle.
�� Brian shrieked and Joanna darted to
the other side of the elevator, clipboard in hand and took the car off
emergency kickstarting it downwards.
�� Dammit Joanna!�
Brian shouted.
�� You deserved a lot more than that
asshole!� Joanna barked. The car dinged and the doors parted, Joanna took off
not caring if she was at their destination or not she just wanted away from
Brian.
�� Honey!�
Brian yelled after her. He limped as fast as he could after her until the sting
from her heel wore off. �Oh please Joanna!� He caught up to her down the
corridor. �For what you did on the field, I�d say that was payback enough.�
�� What I did on the field?� Joanna
flared stopping to get in Brian�s face. �What did I do to deserve that�
manhandling you gave me?!�
�� Let�s be honest sweets,� Brian
adjusted his Stetson, �that wasn�t a pinch of the �manhandling� I used to give
you. As for what you did, givin� me the cold shoulder wasn�t very nice,
Joanna.�
�� Don�t like how I dissed you in
front of you boys, quarterback?� Joanna scoffed. �I am not one of your
cheerleading whores who you can slap your thigh to and they will come hither.�
�� I don�t want any goddamn
cheerleader! I want you!� Brian said.
�� You forget Captain Knauer,� Joanna
said in a softer tone, �that I�m the one who left you. And that I hate you!�
�� And you forget Dr. Van Arsdale,�
Brian matched Joanna�s tone, �that I know when you�re lyin�. And baby you�re
lyin�.�
�� Really?�
Joanna challenged with an acidic smile. She turned on her heel and rounded the
corner in the corridor. �Where�s this office of yours, Brian? This ain�t
exactly admin, y�know. Or did you lure me down here to bind and gag me?� Joanna
glared at the walls that went from a dingy gunmetal gray to the Allenville team
colors, the top half white and the bottom half dark blue.
�� Sweetheart, don�t give me ideas. �Cause
I remember all the games we used to play.� Brian said.
�� I�d like to get back to my
infirmary some time today, Captain.� Joanna said not wanting to rehash their
sex life.
�� This way.�
Brian gestured her to follow him. The farther they walked down the hall the
sound of a crowd carrying on got louder. Joanna and Brian stood at a pair of
dark blue steel doors with the decals Allenville Guardsmen.
�� This is your office?� Joanna
pointed to the entrance dubiously.
�� Not quite.� Brian said pushing the
doors open. The cacophony of voices came from the lounge area where off-duty
guards and guards on their lunch hour at the big screen passing around four Playstation 2 controllers doing battle
on Jim Madden�s NFL �03. �Our clubhouse, a home away from home.� Brian announced. �Do
you like it?�
�� A shrine to your
manhood, Brian. I will be sure to steer clear.� Joanna remarked.
Suddenly from her left side someone imitating a cockerel�s crow shot out. It
was Guard Malloy.
�� I knew y�all couldn�t resist our shit!�
Malloy said, the game was put on hold to get a gander
at the reactions he garnered from the doctor. Engleheart, Papajohn and Lambert
were in the kitchen making sandwiches over piles of food that littered the
table. �Is it time for my physical, doctor? Would you like to
take my temperature?!� Malloy roughly spanked his ass that educed hyena
laughter, high fives, fist pounding and knuckle tapping from his teammates. Brian
smirked proudly; he was permitting trash
talk because that�s what the warden expected. Now Joanna could have given into
them and laid into Malloy calling him a vermin dick sucking bastard instead she
turned to Brian and said calmly:
�� Your office,
Captain Knauer?�
�� Right over there.� Brian waved
blithely in the direction of the workout machines and she saw a ripple
glass-fronted white door with the name Captain B. Knauer and a decal of the
Allenville prison guards star. He followed Joanna to his office nodding to his
teammates who whistled and hooted amongst other immature sounds. She waited for
him to unlock the door and stepped in. Brian�s office, while not as luxurious
as Hazen�s was much bigger than hers. His walnut desk was meticulously neat; he
had a comfortable black leather swivel chair behind it, a pair of comfortable
wooden chairs, and a black leather sofa against the wall with an Allenville
blue and white banner fringed in gold above it. Joanna saw a Miami Hurricanes
pennant tacked by the window and taking up nearly the whole wall adjacent of
Brian�s desk was his trophy case. She recognized a number of them. Behind glass
were trophies from his high school football team, the Hurricanes and the
Allenville Guardsmen. There were many framed photos, big and small, of coaches,
trainers, the warden, and the teams and solo players. Brian opened and closed
his black metal cabinet drawers searching for and pulling out forms, Joanna
looked at him then back at the trophy case.
�� Was football all he thought about?
She sighed silently, maybe it was just a physical thing but she did still want
him. She hadn�t been with a man in nearly a year and a half when her last
relationship ended with her stock broker ex-boyfriend being investigated by the
SEC. Keystrokes stirred her from her self-pity party and she saw Brian at his
PC wearing a pair of narrow, wire-framed reading glasses. Joanna ducked her
head feeling like a schoolgirl with her first crush, of course Brian would need
glasses, they were older now. But he looked distinguished in them- even with
the Stetson.
�� Joanna,� Brian called to her,
�these forms need signing.� She approached his desk, smoothed her lab coat over
her ass and legs and took a seat. He handed her a pen, the forms and a black leather
portfolio for her to write on. Joanna scrawled her name wherever it was needed;
when she handed it back to Brian he dated and stamped it. Joanna noticed the
little Florida state flag crisscrossed with the Texas state flag on his desk
and a small framed photo, but of who she couldn�t tell as it faced away from
her. Maybe it was a better idea not to ask. �The white copies are mine,� Brian
informed her, �the blue copies go to Lynette and the pink copies are for your
records. Nurse Williams will know what to do with them.�
�� Thank you.� Joanna took the pink
form and was ready to leave.
�� Joanna.� She turned back to Brian
with a stern look; he sat back in his chair cool as a cucumber. �Try to make
things easy on yourself.�
�� What is that supposed to mean, Brian?�
Joanna asked, he was grating her nerves again.
�� You know what it means.� He replied
cryptically. Joanna brought her arms up and slapped them down against her
thighs frustratedly.
�� No I don�t, Brian. Not around here at least.� He let her go from his office
hearing from behind the door his teammates say their goodbyes. He laced his
fingers behind his head and thought back to those endless days where he and
Joanna would go off campus to the park, shoot the bull and toss the football
back and forth. She had no love for the sport, but she certainly liked tackling
him back then.

�� TBC
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Fate's Bitch