Page 98 of Stolen Ones
Fifty-Nine
Alex headed to her first meeting of the day. There were two pieces to put in place today and a third tomorrow, which would pretty much guarantee her release with or without the inspector’s recommendation.
Stone was her failsafe. Her last resort if her carefully constructed plot went wrong. She was the cherry on top of the cake, and what a delicious cherry she was.
It took her only a moment to spot Stella in the dinner hall. She was at the far end sitting next to Titch, a blonde woman of generous proportions in both height and width.
Stella Mackinley was serving ten years for running a crystal meth lab out of a barn in rural Warwickshire. So volatile had been the equipment and chemicals that police had been unable to enter until deemed safe by the fire service.
There were few things that bothered the women collectively, but anything that involved harming children got their attention. And Stella had sold to teens.
The drug itself was known to be highly addictive due to the long-lasting euphoric effect, a high that went on for as long as twelve hours, much longer than cocaine.
Knowing that she was unlikely to last the stretch unharmed, Stella had wasted no time in enlisting the first muscle she had come across. Titch would do anything for a couple of extra quid to shovel down the gummy bears she was addicted to. And that was her payment for protecting one of the most hated women in the prison.
There was only one thing that Stella wanted more than protection and that was control. And Alex was going to offer it for a price.
She walked down the food line and headed over to the table, sitting two spaces away from her target.
Both Stella and Titch eyed her suspiciously but continued eating.
Alex reached to her side and positioned the phone at the edge of her pocket. She adjusted her position on the seat.
The phone made a noise as it met with the ground. Alex paused one second before reaching to pick it up. She made a show of looking around.
‘That a fucking phone?’ Stella asked, still looking at the spot on the floor where it had landed.
Alex said nothing and continued to eat.
Stella scooted across to the seat that had separated them.
‘I said, is that a fucking phone?’
‘Shh,’ Alex said, looking around. She knew no one else had seen or heard.
‘I need to use it.’
Of course she did. She had an empire to run, and it wasn’t easy with recorded phone calls.
Having the ability to call Inspector Stone directly had been nice, but this had been her real plan all along.
‘Can’t do. I need it. I’ve got calls to make.’
‘Give me that fucking phone or you’ll be eating a mouthful of fist.’
‘From who?’
She inclined her head towards Titch.
Alex smiled in response and leaned around her.
‘Hey, Titch, that iPod still working okay for you?’
She nodded while scraping up the last of her cold custard.
‘Sound, mate, sound.’
Who knew that a cheap device loaded with Barry Manilow songs would buy her protection for her entire stretch? She had known. She had made it her business to know and that’s why she always got what she wanted.
