Chapter Seven
Fighting a headache from her indiscretion the night before, Joan arrived at Wentworth a little later than usual. Her deputy, Jake Stewart was at the counter checking inmate mail.
“Good morning, Governor” he chirped cheerfully.
“Mr. Stewart, come to my office later,” Joan said while kneading her temple with her first and middle fingers.
“Bad headache?”
“Bearable”
Just as Joan’s headache started to fade from the aspirins, there was a knock on her door.
“Come in”
“Governor, you wanted to see me?” Jake said as he stepped into her office.
“Sit down, Mr. Stewart. I wanted to ask you about your relationship with Vera Bennett.”
Jake frowned, “What is it you wish to know?”
“Was everything normal to you?” Joan did not really know what normal was between a man and a woman.
“You mean how she was when I fucked her?” Jake quickly added, “sorry, Governor.”
Joan motioned with her hand, urging Jake to continue.
“She seemed awfully inexperienced. And she wasn’t into it. Like she wasn’t really there,” Jake pulled no punches, “it wasn’t all that great.”
Laughing he added, “You did say she was vanilla. Maybe she prefers women.”
Joan seethed with anger. Anger at Vera for allowing a miscreant like Jake Stewart to fuck her. And anger at Jake Stewart fucking her, her Vera. Joan maliciously sneered at the thought that she put an end to any feelings Vera might have for Jake with his false testimony in court. Vera was all alone and she would keep her that way.
Joan finally had the courage to turn on the CCTV. After scanning the community units and the yard, Joan switched it to check in on Vera.
Vera wasn’t in her cell. Joan panned the camera and caught sight of Vera by a table in the center space of protection. She was staring at a blank piece of paper. It seems she was trying to write a letter but could not set words to paper. She dropped the pencil on the table and grasped her head in her hands. She shook her head. Was she crying?
Joan could not take her eyes off of the tormented Vera. To whom could she be writing? Joan was not one to make friends and she thought Vera was not dissimilar. Yet the CCTV showed a different Vera, a Vera who was trying to write a letter to someone very important to her. Joan was jealous. In her jealousy, she vowed that she would find out who it was and put an end to it.