Crucified

Chapter 7

Janet Williamson lived alone in a small, rented flat above an estate agent in the local village. It was a temporary rental as her retirement date was only a few weeks away. She was a fully qualified nurse who had worked most of her career in UK prisons. After Holloway closed, she’d been offered numerous placements, and she chose to be the senior nurse in the hospital wing at Bellview prison in Southeast London. It was a Category A men’s prison, with a high security unit housing some of the UK’s most dangerous and violent criminals in squalid single-occupancy cells. It was overcrowded, run-down and in need of refurbishing, as well as having a reputation as a brutal prison, with constant gang fights and assaults on staff — but the pay was consequently very good.

Added to that, Janet had seen it all during her career, and there was little that surprised or disturbed her, having treated Category A inmates and others who were drug addicts, alcoholics or who had mental health issues. Working in the hospital unit for inmates who were too ill to be examined on their wing suited her just fine.

The only downside was Doctor Zardari, the new prison doctor, who worked as a local GP two mornings a week and spent the rest of his time at the prison. He seemed unsure of himself and couldn’t get the hang of the prison rules and regulations.

On Sunday morning, Janet had a lie-in until 11 a.m. before going shopping at her local Tesco. She filled her trolley with frozen meals, one for every day of the week, and was just reaching for a carton of milk when she heard a voice behind her.

‘Sorry to bother you... but is your name Janet?’

She ignored the voice and walked towards the cold meat section, but the man followed her.

‘My name’s Josh Logan, a friend of Laura’s, the police detective. We met at that big Met event some time ago. I’m a detective on the New York drugs squad.’

She turned, frowning, having no recollection of him, although she vaguely remembered meeting a policewoman called Laura somewhere. She had no idea that he had followed her from her flat to the supermarket.

‘Oh, do you live round here?’ She noticed his shopping basket contained a bottle of wine, crisps and prawn crackers.

‘No, I’m staying at a B&B down the road. I’m doing drugs awareness lectures at prisons across the country before I retire. I remember you said you were a prison nurse.’

She nodded. ‘At Bellview. But I’m retiring soon too.’ Looking at him properly, she realised he wasn’t bad looking. ‘I’m sorry I didn’t remember you straightaway.’

‘And there was me thinking I was unforgettable,’ he smiled, and she laughed.

As they headed to the car park, Josh helped carry Janet’s groceries. She noticed his limp and asked if he had a bad knee. He explained he’d been shot on an undercover assignment and his knee had got worse over the years.

‘Family?’ Josh asked.

‘Divorced. My daughter lives in New Zealand.’

‘Long way,’ Josh commented.

‘I’m going to visit when I retire,’ she said. ‘Marion went over there to be with the love of her life, but he dumped her and broke her heart, as well as leaving her six months pregnant. It’s hard for her, being a single mother. She’s got a good job as a bookkeeper for an insurance company, though.’

She was, by now, very chatty and offered to give him a lift. He did his best to make her laugh describing the underwhelming B&B he was staying in, and was rewarded when she asked if he would like to have lunch at her flat. Still got it, Josh thought to himself.

Janet’s kitchen was as bland as the rest of the flat. Josh opened the bottle of Merlot and sat at the table with its worn plastic table-cloth while Janet put a frozen bolognese in the microwave and two small baguettes in the air fryer.

‘I’ve not had anyone here since I moved in,’ she admitted. ‘I like my own company, but I do sometimes feel like an inmate doing time... I suppose I am in some ways. Bellview houses some horrific bastards, mind. You wouldn’t want to be in the same room with them if you knew what they’d done, but it goes with the job.’

The microwave pinged. Janet removed the bread from the air fryer and got two dinner plates out.

‘Not like dining at the Ritz, I know, but help yourself.’

‘It smells delicious.’ Josh poured them both a second glass of wine and tucked in. When they were finished, Janet made them both mugs of instant coffee.

‘So, tell me, why does a big shot New York detective like you want to go round giving talks at shithole prisons over here? Because I can guarantee there won’t be any of the buggers listening. If they turn up at all, it’ll just be an excuse to get out of their cells.’

Josh explained about the horrors of synthetic opioids and the havoc they were wreaking in the US. ‘If I can do anything to stop it happening here, it’ll be worth my time. Maybe some of them will listen. Can I ask — how many fatalities have occurred in Bellview from fentanyl overdoses?’

‘Listen, love, ours OD on heroin, Vicodin, OxyContin and Percocet, and stopping drugs from being smuggled in is a losing battle for prison officers. They’re so short-staffed it’s impossible to do strip-searches and watch the visitors all the time. Some inmates deal drugs, and if they are in a cell 24 hours a day, they have plenty of time to devise clever ways of getting relatives and friends to smuggle the gear in.’

Josh nodded, knowing virtually every prison in the US was in a similar situation. ‘There is a new drug exploding onto the market you may not have heard of. It’s called xylazine or “tranq”. It’s a veterinary tranquilliser. Dealers are mixing it with fentanyl, methamphetamine, cocaine, and downers. In the US, it’s being found more and more in lab-tested samples of seized heroin and fentanyl. The problem is, it literally eats away your flesh from the inside out, and the only way to stop it from spreading is by amputation.’

‘I’ve not come across it. We definitely haven’t had any flesh-eating cases in Bellview yet, thank God.’

‘People are even taking xylazine on its own. Being a powerful sedative, it makes them appear physically unresponsive or ‘zombified’, which leaves them vulnerable on the street. Nalox-one has no effect on it. In fact, there is no approved antidote for a xylazine overdose.’

For the first time, she looked genuinely shocked. ‘Bloody hell. To be honest, I don’t think we’ve got much of a problem with fentanyl. That said, God only knows what’s coming in.’ Janet picked up their empty mugs and took them over to the sink.

‘Do you think the staff and inmates at Bellview might listen to me?’ he asked.

‘Well, the prison doctor, Doctor Zardari, is quite young and inexperienced. I’m sure he could learn a lot from you about these new drugs. And I’m sure the inmates will love that accent of yours... where are you from?’

‘Louisiana. But I’ve been in New York for nearly twenty-five years.’

‘Married?’

‘Divorced a couple of times,’ he laughed.

‘Any kids?’

‘Two girls.’ Josh was pleased Janet was asking all these personal questions. It suggested he’d managed to kindle a spark between them. But he still had some questions of his own. ‘As a matter of interest, do you know who the biggest dealers are in Bellview? I might have encountered them when I worked in London a few years ago on a big drugs case.’

‘Drug dealers are always kingpins in prisons, but it’d be a bit unethical of me to name them. No offence, but I don’t want to risk getting into trouble when I’m about to retire and get my pension. I’ve always gone carefully, even when I worked in Holloway.’

Josh knew not to push it. ‘Sure. Understood. The last thing I want to do is cause you any problems.’

Josh stood up from the table. ‘Thanks for the delicious lunch, Janet, but I should be getting back to do some work on my talk.’

‘Thank Tesco, you mean,’ she laughed.

He smiled. ‘I’d like to take you out for dinner to say thank you properly.’

‘Well, we’re short of restaurants around here, but there’s a good Turkish one open on Sundays.’

‘That’s a date, then. I’ll come by about seven?’

Janet wiped her hands on a tea-towel, smiling. ‘I’ll give them a ring and book a table.’

After Josh had left, Janet decided to take a bath, wash her hair, and perhaps even wear it loose, not having done so for years. She went to her bedroom, pulled off her sweater, unzipped her skirt and kicked it to one side. Her underwear had seen better days, and the elastic in her waist-training pants had long gone. She stood in front of her bedroom mirror and wondered what Josh would think if he saw her naked.

‘For God’s sake, Janet Williamson,’ she said quickly. ‘Pull yourself together, your imagination is running away with you. Face it, you are well past a time of any man wanting you and have been for twenty years.’ She glared at herself, a woman so used to dealing with untrustworthy and frankly disgusting men that she wasn’t used to thinking about a man in that way. She couldn’t even remember the last time she went out on a date.

Josh made it back to his B&B, more than ready for his medication and injection; his leg felt as if it was on fire. He lay on the cramped bed in his awful room, with dreadful flowery wallpaper, and closed his eyes. It would be a lot harder than he thought to do what he planned. Janet was a tough nut to crack, but he needed her. He sighed, knowing he had fucked a lot worse in his life, and if that was what it was going to take, then that was what he would do.

He slept for a few hours before getting ready to meet Janet for dinner. He sprayed some aftershave on his neck and armpits and made his way to Janet’s flat in a taxi, to save his leg. She opened the door, and he stood back admiringly.

‘Hey, you scrub up well, Janet... you look lovely.’

She blushed, unable to recall the last time a man paid her a compliment.

They walked to the Turkish restaurant, which was bigger and more modern than Josh expected, and ordered a large mixed grill to share. Janet had brought a photo album to show Josh pictures of her daughter and grandchild and said she couldn’t wait to go and see them, so Josh ordered a bottle of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc to go with the meal.

As they clinked glasses, Janet said she hoped her daughter’s new partner was going to turn out better than the last one.

‘What about you, Janet? Are you seeing anyone?’ Josh asked.

She laughed. ‘No, not for years. I’m not interested in a relationship, either.’

‘What about Marion’s father?’

‘He’s been out of my life for twenty-five years, thank God. I don’t know or care where he is. He was a heavy drinker and used his fists when he’d had a few. The final straw was when he knocked me about in front of Marion... I kicked him out, changed the locks and got two friends of mine working in the prison to beat the shit out of him.’

Josh nodded sympathetically. ‘Good for you.’

‘What about you?’ Janet asked.

‘Well, like you, I’m single now and ready to retire, but I wanted to make one last-ditch effort to do something good. I believe this country will be overwhelmed with xylazine unless people wake up to the threat. And I don’t just mean the authorities. I want my message to get through to the drug traffickers, particularly the top dogs doing long sentences. If I can get them on my side...’

Janet shrugged her shoulders. ‘Waste of time, love. They don’t give a damn what happens to the people they sell their drugs to.’ She drained her glass which Josh refilled for her. ‘I should watch it. I’m over my limit already. But it’ll take more than a couple of glasses of wine to get me to tell you who the dealers are.’

Josh waved his hand dismissively, as if that was the last thing on his mind, and they chatted about other things until it was time to get the bill. After paying, he walked her home, wondering if she’d ask him in, but no luck.

‘Thanks for a lovely meal,’ she said.

‘My pleasure. Maybe see you tomorrow when I give my talk.’

Back at his B&B, Josh quickly medicated himself before turning in. He’d hoped to get Janet into bed but in the end was relieved it hadn’t happened. He doubted he could have got an erection. As for his plan, he’d just have to play it by ear the following morning.