Chapter 9- Defending territory

A/n – he he, I was evil and I made up another character. But he wont be in it for long, don't you worry.

Previously…

"Doc, stand back, and hide behind your desk" Joey instructed the other woman, who was about to be attacked by to very large men with homemade shanks.

"Oh please, you think those little things are going to stop me." Joey said with a chuckle.

They attacked.

And Joey did what she did best, fought back. She was not known for taking things lying down.

One of the guys called out the name Jack, and his buddy attacked, leading own to deduct that one of the guys name was Jack.

"Well Jack, give me your best shot" Joey said and let Jack attack her. The only good thing about prison was the inmates were all in it for themselves. There was no loyalty, only phony sentimentality.

Jack came at her with a upper cut, and managed to slice her stomach, although it was not a stab wound, and would not lead internal bleeding which could potentially be life threatening.

She managed to reach in, and grab the hand that contained the shank, and twisted it breaking the hand. That caused Jack to go scurrying back to whatever hole he had crawled out of.

The irony did not miss Joey. She was being attacked, and they were trying to kill her, in an infirmary, which is stupid, it wouldn't be hard when it came to be patched back up.

"You got anything better, because I'd be glad to dish out to you as well" Joey said and gave one of her trademark I'm-possessed- by-Satan evil look.

"Um, no" He said and ran to wherever his friend had also wondered off too.

"Wow that was interesting. Hey doc I got something for you too look at. Their gone now. And probably won't be back for a while." Joey said calling out to the Doctor who was hiding behind a filing cabinet.

" You saved my life" She said coming out of her hiding place to stand in front of Joey "you're bleeding" she said out loud to no one in general

"Thank you for noticing. I had not noticed the sticky feeling that was pouring all over my hand. Do me a favor and do not tell McManus about this." Joey said imploringly to the doctor.

"If you insist. But I'm only doing this because you saved my life. This makes us even" She said while starting to clean and dress Joey's wound.

Dark Corridor in Em City

"Is it done?" said a voice hidden in the shadows

Jack and this accomplice had returned after a blotched killing.

"No, she's better then we- um, you thought sir" said the accomplice

"Yea, that bitch broke my fingers" Jack said, pissed off.

"I don't give a shit about your fingers, I want her taken care of" the voice said his anger showing in his voice.

"Yes boss, but we need to lie low for a while, she going to be out for blood" Jack said

"She might have the alliance behind her, but she'll still be the one doing the dirty work, don't you worry. You'll have an opportunity very soon to take care of our new problem" the voice said and walked away.

Infirmary

"Is this place always so, how do I say this, eventful?" Joey asked

"Not usually. You've causes quite an uprising. And from what I hear your business proposal has some groups fighting, but they are all allied behind the idea" She explained

"Glad I could help" Joey said with a smirk.

"You like to keep things hopping and everyone on their toes. I have never seen McManus so perplexed about an inmate. Your bring out the worst in people" She commented

Joey reached out her hand, and grasped the good doctor's wrist in an iron glad grip. "Don't you ever say that about me again" Joey ordered

Then quickly got up off the treatment table, and walked out, she grabbed some extra gauze on the way out. Just incase she needed it. Lucky the gash didn't need stitches. That would put her out of the running as one of the fighters.

"Take me back to my cell. NOW" Joey ordered the guard that had taken her there.

At first he seemed shocked to see Joey standing in front of him, healthy and not dead or dying. But he quickly regained his composure and did as she asked.

She got back in time to be served lunch.

Isolation Cell 4

McManus stopped by a little before lights out.

"Well what do I owe this honor?" Joey asked when she looked up and noticed him standing there.

"You're doing push ups?" McManus asked perplexed, had this woman not just yesterday had broken ribs, and this morning was reported to have been doing chin-ups.

"Well since I've been on restricted and can't get access to the gym, so I might as well make up for it now" Joey said explaining her rationalization.

"Yes, well I've decided that you can be moved back into Em City. Tomorrow morning" He said like he was being generous.

"I'm guessing Sister Pete gave me a glowing recommendation?" Joey asked hedging for information.

She had realized that he only problem with isolation was the lack of contact with others. Hence the name isolation. She didn't know what was going on. She now knew why Said had wanted her to work for him.

Although she had been surprised, most Muslim men thought that women were beneath their station. Then again maybe he was having her do the dirty work was just a translation of that.

"Well, I'm doing what I think is best. I want you, and some of the other sects to together and discuss, if you did get approval, who going to front what cash, etc." McManus stipulated

"That's cool. I have that all layout, I just need everyone's signature. So when do we pitch the idea to the big bosses?" Joey asked finally liking the idea of getting the ball rolling.

"Right well. I don't care what you do. But just get it done" McManus said and walked out.

Leaving her to think about what happen in the morning when she was released back into Em city, and having to deal with those that attacked her, and the problems she would face trying to unite all the different sects under one common goal.

Just then the guard tapped on her door, something they had taken to doing to make sure that she was decent.

"Yea" She responded quickly

"You have another visitor, you seem oddly popular" the guard said sarcastically

He didn't understand why she had so many visitors; the whole point of isolation was that you didn't come into contact with anybody, that you were in essence, isolated. But under the instructions of McManus he was to allow anybody that wished to see this particular prisoner the right to do so.

"Who is it?" She asked

"I'm not playing twenty questions with you. Will you see the person or not?" He asked growing quickly agitated with her.

"Fine" She finally said reluctantly

And low and behold who walked in none, other then Ryan the person she'd been hoping to talk to all day.

"So you're having my brother do you dirty work now?" He asked pissed off.

He had hoped he could keep this all contained until she got back into Em City, but uncertainty of when she might be coming back go to him, and he had to see her, make sure she was alright.

"You know that it wasn't like that. I didn't see you jumping to me help. And he was the closest person to me that I could trust. And I figure if Cyril gave it to you, you'd go to McManus with it" Joey said ruefully.

"So you played me" Ryan said, that didn't make him anymore happier.

"I did what I needed to survive. I thought you of all people would be pleased with it. But it seems that nothing I can do will make you happy" Joey said and pouted.

"You know you had us all shocked at what a small, skinny woman like you could possibly take on that many guards, and figuratively win. That's why all the guys are standing behind you on this one" Ryan said "But then again I'm guessing that's why you did it, isn't it?" Ryan said hoping for clarification

"Mostly yes, and I wanted to see how far I could get" Joey said, knowing that would piss him off

She didn't know why she was doing it, but the thought of getting some other emotion out of him, was spurring her forward. She wanted to push his buttons, to see how far he would take her abuse.

"Why did you have to go and ruin a good thing?" He said coming up close to her, cupping her face in his hands.

"I don't know I'm just fucked up. I thought you were mad at me. And I got some bad news and I couldn't deal, so I made everyone else deal" She whispered to him, and then forcefully took his mouth with her own.

After a few long moments he pulled away from her. The kiss had been bruising, not just physically but emotional charged. She was making him care about her, something he had been avoiding doing since the beginning.

"Mad at you why?" Ryan asked perplexed. Sure he had acted mad but that was because she seemed to be brushing him away, and dismissal wasn't something he took to very well.

"You acted like you didn't care" Joey said like she was a little child whose abusive parents had just told her that they in fact did love her.

He pulled her into his arms, he didn't care who saw. Although the likelihood of that was slim "I care" He whispered into her ear. It was something tender, he pulled her close not wanting anybody else to hear it and ruin the moment.

"Alright people, move it along" The guard said and scarped his baton across the bars, grabbing both their attention.

"I guess I should be going. So when are you getting out of here do you know?" Ryan asked her slowly pulling away from her.

"I'm being moved back to Em city tomorrow morning. Have the guys bang out the welcome mat, because mama' coming home" Joey said her demeanor showing nothing of the tenderness they had shared just minutes earlier.

"Sure thing" Ryan said with a chuckle, hopping that everything was going to be right in her world again.

He couldn't take knowing that she purposely put herself in the line of fight. As he was retreating back to Em city, he couldn't help but think about her, she was a complex one. And he liked that about her, she always seemed to be able to keep him on his toes.

"Shit" he said to himself. He never did get to ask her what the bad news was that made he go ballistic. Maybe if he knew he could somehow prevent it from happening again.

"Stop it O'Riley" he said to himself "You're getting way too involved" he knew it would happen. Now he would just have to deal with it.