‘Well, you’ve got a lot in common,’ said Anna.

‘Really?’ asked Adele, taking care to keep her voice calm.

‘Oh, yeah,’ Anna added enthusiastically.

Adele grabbed a book and climbed onto the top bunk, smiling to herself as she waited for Anna to continue, confident that she would.

It was several minutes before Anna spoke again. ‘Well, for a kick-off, you and Caroline are both brainy.’

‘Yeah, and there’s ten years between us.’

‘Doesn’t matter,’ said Anna. ‘You both don’t do drugs.’

‘She’s got children, I haven’t.’

Adele could hear Anna pant as she rushed to provide an alternative statement. ‘You both dress nice,’ she gushed.

‘She’s fair, I’m dark,’ Adele countered straight away, stifling a giggle. She was enjoying playing with Anna.

There was a pause before Anna added her next morsel of information. ‘You’re both in for a long stretch.’ This time there was a confident edge to her voice.

Aah, now we’re getting there, thought Adele. It was obviously something to do with Caroline’s sentence.

‘I’ve got a temper, she hasn’t,’ said Adele.

‘Ha-ha,’ chuckled Anna. ‘I hope for your sake that she never fuckin’ turns on you, then.’

Now Adele was intrigued. ‘Go on, what’s she in for?’

‘You mean you don’t know?’ asked Anna.

‘It never seemed the right time to ask.’

Now Anna was winning the game and Adele could hear the glee in her voice as she said, ‘Well, if she’s not gonna tell yer, then it’s not my business to.’

‘Why not? You didn’t mind telling everyone about me.’

Anna sniffed. ‘Yours was common knowledge anyway. It’s been all over the fuckin’ papers.’

‘Right. So, you’re not going to tell me?’ Adele asked, becoming a little irritated.

‘No. It’s none of my business who you choose to spend your time with.’

Although Adele felt a little annoyed with Anna, she decided not to play along any more. She wouldn’t give her the pleasure. Adele felt confident that if she left it long enough, Anna would tell her anyway. She wouldn’t be able to help herself.

Instead Adele tried to focus on her book. As she lay on her bed one of the guards came and announced that it was time for lock-down. Adele heard the heavy metal cell door slam shut and she had a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. It always had that effect on her, even though she’d been inside for a few weeks now. As usual, she tried to rein in her anxiety and took deep breaths to steady her racing heart as she thought about being locked inside the tiny cell overnight.