Chapter VII - Taking A Stand
Bea fluttered her eyes when she heard the reminder for morning count. Yawning, she stretched out to find that Allie was not there. Flashbacks of Ferguson arose and her paranoia suddenly clouded all objectivity, as she stumbled out from her red blanket and put some clothes on her nude body. Throwing her hair up into a high ponytail, she stumbled out of her cell, worry and panic on her face. Maxine, all knowing, soothed her by telling her that Allie had gone to visitors centre. Wiping a red curl away from her face, she pondered on who possibly Allie could be visiting. Maybe Allie had family that visited her in secret or maybe Allie had gotten bored of her. She knew she was reading into it too much, and with this, she nodded at Maxine who intently followed her to breakfast.
Allie knew that Franky had pulled out all the stops for this meeting. She had managed to arrange it with the governor of the facility, Ms. Bennett to have a meeting with her on legal matters that was in private and out of visiting hours to avoid any unnecessary attention from the other prisoners. Franky sat on the table, drumming her thumbs against the wooden desk, ready to meet the superhuman who could do what she couldn't, and that was to get with the legendary Queen Bea Smith. As the tattooed brunette sat waiting her arrival, Allie herself was nervous to meet Franky for the first time. She had heard about her a lot, but meeting her in person was a complete different matter.
Franky's legacy had lived on throughout Wentworth, having done a seven year stretch for wounding with intent. Having a reputation for being Wentworth's own Casanova, Allie secretly admired her and her supposed sexual confidence, however nothing could even compare to her sweet, shy, loving and attentive Bea Smith. As Mr. Jackson opened the door for her to enter the visitors room, he left Allie and Franky alone with one comment : "Watch out for this one" he smirked, leaving a little smile on Allie's face as she came across Franky Doyle for the first time. Tattoos on both arms, black hair up in a pony tail and a grin like a Cheshire cat, here she was.
Franky was donning a olive cut off vest, black jeans and high ankle boots, in comparison to Allie's teal pants and white t-shirt which made her seem pretty bland, although Bea had always commented that she looked beautiful in absolutely every way. The thought of Bea made her smile as she took the first steps into shaking Franky's hand before sitting down. "So, you must be the legendary Allie Novak, I've heard all about you" Franky beamed as she sat down and began to push forward a cup of coffee that she had brought with her.
"Two sugars, I had to guess" Franky shrugged as Allie gave her thanks before saying "So, what has Bea told you then?" Allie asked, curious to know an outside opinion of what Bea thought of Allie. "You're Kaz's ex second in command before you left her. A load of shit went down but you were always loyal. In fact, to quote her words, she's never felt like this before. You must be one lucky girl. She was uptight when I met her for the first time" Franky giggled as she took a sip of her coffee which had four sugars in, giving her all the energy to try and fill Allie's request. "So...I have some amazing, good news which I was going to tell Bea but seeming as we are doing this in secret, I'll keep it as a surprise.." Franky grinned, Allie returning the gesture.
Bea had not seen Allie all morning and was starting to get worried. Had she been caught up with Sonia and Kaz after the aftermath of the fight? Bea didn't want to go to breakfast without her lover, she just didn't feel herself when Allie was around. A gentle nudge from Maxine urged her in the mess hall, and she felt a little relieved when nobody glared at her or laid their eyes upon her in a threatening and demeaning manner as they had done before. The mess hall was full with chatter from the women who seemed to be settling down with this shift in power, however the H3 table seemed empty, and Bea could only assume that it was because of Sonia's women bashing them to high heaven and back.
As Bea placed a strip of bacon and two eggs on her plate, not feeling like beans or toast today, she took a seat in her normal chair before watching the rest of her crew sit before her. Everyone seemed normal with their small talk and irrelevant conversations, whether they were talking about Liz's daughter, Sophie, how Maxine's chemotherapy was going and how Nash was doing with baby Josh in Perth. Nobody seemed to bother Bea, and that she was thankful for. However, it seemed as if she cursed her luck as Juice tapped her on the shoulder and nodded towards their table. Bea did as she was told, wanting to keep up the charade of her and Sonia being allies, and went to take the chair next to Sonia, who had a big grin on her face.
"How are you doing?" Bea asked politely, before drumming her fingers on the table as Sonia ate a portion of her egg. She finished before speaking: "It's good. Everyone has seemed to accept my power. Kaz is in medical with her crew, so I have no qualms with that. However Bea, power does not come without consequences. So I do not want you to get angry with my next statement" Sonia began, looking Bea dead in the eyes, Bea already knowing what Sonia was going to tell her. "Tina Mercado gives me a great forecourt for my power. I have struck an agreement with her. She will not peddle any of her gear to your girls. That is set in stone" Sonia finished, looking for Bea's angry reaction which was anything but.
"It doesn't go near Allie, it does not bother me" Bea stated, Sonia nodding in agreement. "I think you'll find that you will find your support in me will be satisfactory" Sonia said, before leaning in close to Bea's ear. "I have some champagne coming in. Special delivery. 8, sharpish. We'll celebrate" Sonia smiled, Bea nodding back and smiling. Bea was secretly disgusted at how hypocritical Sonia was being with her statement but she knew that she had to protect herself and her crew and the only way to do that was to side with Sonia. For now.
Kaz Proctor laid in the bed in medical, stitches in her forehead to stop blood from seeping out and various bruises on her body. She also had a bowl next to her which was full with her blood; the internal bleeding doing some damage to her. Kaz knew she had lost that fight with Sonia, but with good intention. She knew that the next time she rose, she would be much stronger. She just had to play the long game. She hoped that Bea's primal instincts as being one of the most successful top dogs would prove worthy. With these thoughts rushing through her head, she seemed oblivious to the fact that a short figure with a tight bun and the governor's rank slide on her shoulders had stepped in to see the damage for herself.
Vera Bennett was shocked when she saw the state of Kaz. Her reign as top dog was very short and she was sure that nothing could amount better than that of Bea Smith who's ideology fitted perfectly with that of the correctional service: no drugs. She knew that Kaz ultimately wanted security and safety, and much like Bea, used the stance of top dog to proclaim that. But as Vera saw the woman that had such a fierceness about her look so weak and powerless, Vera felt sympathy as she knew how easily Kaz was emotionally manipulated and wound up.
"How are you feeling?" Ms. Bennett asked, not expecting a reply from Kaz as she expected that she would keep quiet about the whole incident. Vera knew that there was no point in even asking who did it because she knew that she would never get an answer. The repercussions for the other women were far too dangerous and would end up in her getting hurt a lot more than she currently was right now. Kaz just shook her head, a stray tear falling from her eye, knowing that she was going to have to spend the next 12 years just trying to keep alive. She just wished that everything could be normal, a time before Wentworth, a time before Joan Ferguson, a time before Bea Smith.
"I want to place my hands around the throat of Sonia Stevens" Kaz stated, sobbing a little bit after being angry at the thought of possibly losing. She felt a little bit jealous that Sonia was top dog and not her but even Kaz knew when her jealousy was being childish and getting the better of her. "You're now a former top dog along with Bea Smith. Are you going to challenge her again?" Vera asked, again not expecting a response. Kaz shook her head. Vera knew she had pestered the blonde enough and decided to leave her be. She stepped outside to engage in a conversation with the nurse before looking back at Kaz and leaving.
"No fucking way!" Allie whizzed, the happiness radiating off of her. She felt like a child on Christmas morning, and it wasn't even anything to do with her. "The chick at the legal centre did some digging and she reckons that they can get the neighbour's CCTV recording to show that Brayden Holt did in-fact kill Debbie Smith, therefore leading to Bea's later actions and a motive. Now I'm only a para-legal and as I'm a friend, I can't help her in court. I'm aware Bea has a lot of money, so she could hire an expensive lawyer to get a police investigation back into circulation. If there was CCTV, it would show it clearly, and show a corrupt police officer within Melbourne. It would be beneficial for the police to accept it" Franky grinned, Allie almost jumping out of her seat.
"That's...fucking incredible...so are you saying what I think you are saying?" Allie said, smiling as she gulped the rest of her coffee. Franky nodded, her grin now ear to ear. "If we get an expensive lawyer t do this investigation, with my help, we can look at a sentence reduction...with parole" Franky clapped with excitement as she flicked over her files once more. Allie's legs danced with happiness, looking at the extremely small slim chance that she may be able to live with Bea on the outside. "Now, this has to be a secret. She did murder two people so it is extremely unlikely that she'll be out of here. However, if we have sufficient evidence...she may be looking at a 20-30 year stretch" Franky grinned, looking back at her files.
It was now nearing lunch and Bea was honestly starting to fret. She decided to take her anxieties and place pencil onto paper as she started drawing a very high definition photo of her, Debbie and Allie. If only, she thought. Bea's mind wandered to what would happen if she had met Allie on the outside. She smiled at the thought of how happy she would have been. Doreen walked through the unit at that particular moment, and surprisingly, instead of talking about her problems, she decided to ask Bea what that massive smile on her face was. Bea just shook her head, Doreen using her imagination and guessing smartly that it was something to do with Allie. However, her smile did not last as she brought herself back to reality. She was going to die in here.
Allie turned the corner at that exact moment, Bea locking eyes with her as she first entered the unit. Bea stood up and wrapped the blonde tightly in a hug before placing a kiss on her lips. Even though they had only been apart a few hours, Bea missed the younger woman's presence, and vice versa. "Where have you been, Alliecat?" Bea asked promptly. Almost instinctively, she said "I was in the governor's office. She said that I can apprentice you at your class" Allie smiled, telling the white lie with good intent. Bea nodded and brought the younger woman in tighter before Boomer's loud voice split them apart.
"Oooh, I want to watch until it gets interesting" she cackled loudly as she entered the unit. "It was a fucking hug, Booms, it's not like I've got my fingers inside of her" Allie complained. Boomer smirked, conjuring an awesome and provocative response. "No, but they will be later" she grinned, already running as Bea was hot on her heels, ready to bring Boomer down a notch after she gave them relentless teasing about their sex life, always wanting to know everything that went on, in explicit details. Bea gave up her chase when Allie came up behind her and brought the woman in for a hug by wrapping her arms around her waist, making her calm down instantly. She unconsciously relaxed into Allie, and it was almost as if the girl had become a safety blanket for her.
Allie simply said "Well she's good at it and I'm not complaining" before smiling at Boomer, who simply stuck her tongue out and wandered off; most likely to see Stella to trade her some Monte Carlos. As Bea remained behind hugged by Allie, Maxine's face lit up as soon as she saw the sight. She was so happy with her friend, even though she knew she had her own things to be focusing on, she had never seen Bea before this happy. Just before she was about to greet her friends, a red faced Boomer appeared back in the unit, looking obviously distressed.
"A girl. Showers. OD'd. Looks like that pink shit that Franky used to have" Boomer eventually said, the words coming out as she had managed to get heart breath pattern regulated. Bea's face went white as she immediately looked at Allie. Even though she knew the girl was there, every time she heard that a girl had overdosed, she immediately had a heart attack and thought of the worst; and that was her beautiful Allie being taken from her. "Why hasn't anyone pushed the fucking panic button?" Bea quizzed, getting slightly angry at the fact that there was possibly a corpse in the showers. "No one knows why" Boomer said. Bea looked even more frustrated at this, but she knew that she simply could not get angry because she was risking the security an protection of others which was selfish of her.
"Fuck" Bea said under her breath, Allie rubbing her shoulder, knowing the frustration that Bea was feeling. She was no longer in a position of power and control and she felt helpless; she didn't like having to look up and having to take whatever Sonia said but she knew how draining it was on her and she didn't want to challenge Sonia or take up the position again. Being top dog was a double edged sword; everyone wants it but nobody knows how damaging it actually is. Allie dragged Bea back to her cell to calm down as the rest of H1 also vacated to their cells.
"If we press the panic button, they are going to know it was me and my gear. They cell toss us, I get slotted and more time" Tina argued, Sonia stood in silence, peering at the body as Tina had heard that Boomer had spotted a corpse in the showers. A girl from B Block, one of Tina's regulars, had obviously injected herself in shit that was more purer than Tina actually thought, unequivocally leading to her death. Tina felt no remorse for it was her line of business and it was not her responsibility to make sure that all of her client's shot up properly. Sonia pursed, thinking of a way to deal with the situation.
She knew that it left her open if people started taking shots at Tina, however she could not openly protect her as only her new close allies knew of her secrets. This woman had left her in a sticky situation, and Sonia knew she had to go with her gut and follow her conscience as she smacked the red distress signal hard, the sound echoing through the prison. Tina looked at her with splintered eyes, but Sonia left the room before turning to say one final thing to her. "We'll talk. D Block. 8pm" Sonia said before leaving.
Allie stroked Bea's head as she lay on her chest, Bea's hands under her shirt, lightly stroking Allie's ribs making the blonde go wild. Allie had her fingers in red curls before she broke the silence. "Bea" she began, the redhead's head perking up at the sound of her name. "What would you like to do if you were a free woman?" Allie asked, trying to bring it up as a matter of conversation and not wanting to dig deeply. "Be with you" Bea replied honestly, looking up into Allie's eyes before caressing her jaw. Bea leaned forward and pressed her lips against Allie's before pulling back and elaborating on her answer.
"I'd like a Harley. My mum used to have one but she never rode it. She just liked looking at it. A nice beachfront house would be nice too" Bea giggled as Allie smiled back at her. This false hope almost made Bea slightly more depressed as she dug her face back into Allie's chest again. Before they knew it, the panic button signal rang deafeningly around the prison, Allie and Bea both instinctively rising up and cursing. "Code black in the shower block, medical assistance required in the shower block" rang all throughout the prison. Bea lay back down, Allie following as she let Bea's head rest on her chest. "Ruined my fantasy" Bea said, trying to lighten the mood. Allie smiled back at her before Maxine came and knocked on the door to Bea's cell before opening it.
Maxine decided to take a chair that was placed adjacent to the bed in Bea's cell, knowing that they were going to have to discuss what was going on with all the recent overdoses. "What are we going to do, love?" Maxine asked, knowing that they had to make a decision somehow. "I have to play ball. Kaz is weakened now, and so am I. Unfortunately, I think it's a case of letting the women lose faith in her before I start ushering them along the same path and giving them encouragement to support Kaz" Bea stated, sighing after, Allie kissing her cheek which instantly distressed her. Maxine nodded, leaving the cell and the two lovers. "You'll be fine babe" Allie said as she kissed Bea's temple before the two of them lay back in the bed, trying to forget what kind of predicament they were in.
