Free Three Faces of West (2013) by Christian Shakespeare Page B

that someone was approaching the office, perhaps it was the secretary. The wait was momentary as it was indeed the secretary walking in through the door carrying a brown paper folder. Opening it she positioned herself beside her boss to allow him to examine it,
    “File number 654/989, for prisoner number 384788/C name Grey, Maxwell.” She pronounced. This instantly grabbed the attention of both John and Jack as they knew their man was here,
    “Ah yes Grey.” Said the governor as he looked inside, “First admitted here 24 months ago after being convicted for terrorist offences. Currently serving a 15 year term.”
    West needed to find him, “We need to talk to him in relation to a possible secondary incident. Can you tell me where he is, it’s imperative that we speak to him.”
    The governor respected the wishes of West, in charge of a category A prison he knew full well the calibre of men incarcerated within its walls. Twelve foot high barriers are not going to stop the most hardened criminal,
    “Well he was on C wing but it says here in the prisoner log that he was moved last Thursday to the seg unit.”
    “What’s the ‘seg unit’?” Asked John,
    The secretary filled him in. She was used to the jargon and abbreviations used by prisoners and wardens alike,
    “It means segregation unit.”
    “So he’s in solitary confinement.” Queried Jack,
    The governor butted in, “Yes that’s correct. Prisoners are usually transferred there on a temporary basis when they step out of line. Additionally they get part or all of their privileges removed as a result. This being a maximum security prison you cannot underestimate the type of criminals we have here. We’re not talking about petty thieves; these are dangerous men, murders, rapists and terrorists. I’m afraid not even barbed wire and iron bars can deter the criminal minds of the mindless filth that we have in here.”
    Jack totally understood the rhetoric of the governor, even though it was a little bit unorthodox for a man in his position. Still he needed to speak to Grey,
    “Can you arrange for us to set up an interview with our friend?”
    “I’m afraid that may be a little difficult, for normal prisoners we could, but those in the segregation wing are in there for a reason. The only times they are moved from their cells are during transfer, a medical emergency or exercise.” The governor replied,
    John stepped in to the polite little standoff, “We do need to speak to him today though.”
    The governor back down slightly. He was not unreasonable and was prepared for compromise,
    “Alright what I can do is arrange for you to be escorted to the isolation wing, but I can only limit access to Grey himself. I’m not prepared to compromise the security of the wing so I’m afraid you will have talk to him through the door. That’s the best I can do I’m afraid.”
    “That’s fine.” Replied Jack,
    “One more thing though Mr West, I’ll call ahead to the segregation wing and let them know you are coming down, but I’ll have to issue you both with security passes, Jill can you get some out of the draw just there.”
    Jill removed from a nearby drawer two swipe cards as security passes. Jack and John both took theirs taking the opportunity to have a peek at the design. Meanwhile the secretary fleeted out of the room to catch a warden to act as escort. Re-entering the room with a rather tall and bulky dark haired man, this was the chaperone to West and Hudson,
    “Warden Giles here will take you both down to the segregation unit. As I said I’ll phone through and let them know you are coming. If there’s anything else, don’t hesitate to ask.” The governor stated while trying to be as cooperative as possible. Jack returned the courtesy in his reply,
    “Thanks for the help. I’m sure we will need your assistance again.”
    He turned to the Giles the warden in a non-communicative gesture to get on their way. Giles responded like for