Bird

by KW Finch

  Finally Muzzleflash and his crew came over with plates piled high and sat down with me.

  “You look like the cat that got the cream.” Muzzleflash smiled at me as he sat down

  “I’m feeling pretty good.” I smiled back.

  “What’s the occasion?” he asked.

  “Dunno really.” I lied.

  “Oh right.” Muzzleflash replied and I could tell he didn’t believe me. No one really spoke much, they just got on with the job in hand of eating their dinner.

  “Heard a bit of news that might interest you today.” Muzzleflash finally said as he finished his dinner and started his duff.

  “Oh what’s that?” I asked.

  “One of your absent classmates will be back tomorrow.” He answered.

  “What!” I exclaimed. “No!” not yet I thought, I need another day.

  I must have spoken a bit too loudly because all the other cons at the table stopped eating and stared. Muzzleflash had a baffled look on his face.

  “You knew he would be back at some point?” He stated.

  “Yeah, of course.” I agreed in a lower tone. The cons went back to their food. “Just the timing.” I continued. “I need another phone call tonight” I said to Muzzleflash.

  TWENTY SEVEN

  He never answered, he’d finished his duff and was concentrating on making a roll up and sparking it up.

  “Same as before?” He finally asked.

  “Yeah, just a different message.” I answered.

  “Give me twenty minutes.” He grinned getting up and heading to the door. “I’ll be back in a bit.”

  I sat and waited while the servery boys at my table finished their food and went back to the servery and started tidying up. It wasn’t long before Muzzleflash returned and he sat down with me. He rolled another cigarette and sparked it up before speaking. He drew deeply on the roll up and exhaled a large plume of smoke.

  “That’s all fine,” he said while exhaling a cloud of smoke at the same time, “just write your note out with the telephone number and I’ll get it sorted.”

  “Thanks Muzz.” I replied. “Same price?”

  He nodded in reply through the smoky haze.

  “Anything I should know about?” He asked with a quizzical look on his face.

  “I’m off.” I said simply.

  “Oh right.” He said again for the second time that evening. “This is all linked with Woolfe I take it?” He asked.

  “Yeah.” I replied.

  “So that puts a fly in the ointment when he returns tomorrow?”

  “Yeah.” I repeated.

  We sat there in silence for a moment all we could hear was the noise from the servery boys in the background while they were tidying up.

  “Are you sure you’re doing the right thing?” He finally asked.

  “I can’t stand anymore of this place, I need out.” I admitted.

  “Anything I can do to help?” He asked.

  “I don’t know.” I honestly replied. “I’m at a bit of a loss at the moment. I wasn’t planning on Woolfe coming back tomorrow. It’s a real problem.”

  I knew it would take at least an hour to cut through the remaining bar in the tunnel and the last thing I needed was a homicidal maniac on the loose around me. There was no way I could keep him at bay on my own. He probably wasn’t fully recovered himself from the beating which would help but I was hardly in tip top condition myself. I needed another diversion to buy some time.

  “Can we plant some drugs in his cell?” I asked Muzzleflash.

  “Of course.” He answered. “They would have to be class A though, the screws tend to turn a blind eye to a bit of weed. They won’t allow the hard drugs. The problem you have is finding someone you can trust to actually plant the stuff and not keep it for themselves. The last thing you want is to give someone the drugs you’ve paid for, pay them to plant it and then they either keep it for themselves or sell it on again.

  “I’ll plant it myself if I have to.” I answered.

  “Ok, we have to work quick.” Muzzleflash answered. “We’ve got a lot to sort out and bang up…” he said, looking at his watch, “… is in just under two hours. Sort out your note and money for the phone call, I can get that sorted. Can you sort out his drugs and get them planted?” He said.

  “Yeah sure. I need to know his cell number though.” I replied.

  “I’ll find that out if you go and buy the drugs.” He answered. “Mushroom Mick is always a good source, he’s one of the better dealers in here.”

  “I’ll try him first.” I answered as Muzzleflash took a pen from his tunic pocket and handed it to me.

  He then fumbled about in his pockets for a scrap of paper. He couldn’t find any and he ended up ripping the cover off of his Rizla packet and handed it to me. I paused for a moment before writing on the tiny piece of card. How could I explain I wanted to be picked up after escaping from prison in only a few words without causing suspicion to the person giving the message. Also I didn’t have a clue where to tell them to pick me up once I was out.

  “Are you sure this Brian the Iron is trustworthy?” I asked Muzzleflash.

  “We’ve already been through this one London.” He assured me. “And as before he is your only option. Time isn’t really on your side. He’s your best and only choice.”

  He was right and I knew I had to take a chance but I still needed to make the note as cryptic as possible. I wrote the phone number and the message, ‘pick up package at south hill tomorrow for capital.’ I hoped it wasn’t too cryptic for the Growler to understand. Would he know I meant the south side of Fullwood Hill and that capital was me, London?

  I left the note with Muzzleflash and gave him a £20 note then headed off to find Mushroom Mick for the drugs.

  It didn’t take long to find him, he was lurking around the ping pong room waiting for punters. He was an odd looking bloke, the prison issue denim dungarees he wore didn’t really help. He was very fat in the middle part of his body while his legs, shoulders, neck and face were all quite skinny in comparison. He had a long sad looking face that always reminded me of Droopy the cartoon dog, which was totally at odds with his actual character which was sharp and on the ball.

  He pedalled drugs and I got the impression that he never indulged himself, he was only in it for the money. He had a strange habit of always keeping his hands inside the bib part of his dungarees. I stood at the end of the corridor for a moment to see what was going on around him. I was always weary about approaching a pusher, you never knew who was watching him.

  There was always a chance he was about to be mugged or beaten up. Some of them had their own guardian angel always at the ready to spring forth, they were usually big ugly and very violent. They were the type of protector that just broke bones for fun so it was always wise to be a bit cautious. After watching him make a couple of deals I decided it was safe to go and see him.

  “Oi oi Mick.” I chirped approaching him. “How’s tricks?”

  “Oh hello London.” He replied looking around him, ever watchful on what was going on. “To what do I owe this pleasure?”

  “Little bit of business Mick.” I answered. “Some hard stuff, brown, coke, whatever you’ve got.”

  “Didn’t think you indulged London?” He frowned at me.

  “Gotta treat yourself now and again.” I smiled back.

  “Got some good stuff here London.” He nodded and smiled. “How about some brown, £10 a wrap?”

  “I’ll take two.” I replied, taking the cash out of my pocket.

  “You are treating yourself London.” He smiled, looking around again before taking the small parcel out to show me.

  We did our business and I was on my way back to the dining hall again, I had to find out which cell belonged to Woolfe. I met Muzzleflash at the dining hall entrance he was just on his way back from the direction of the wing office.

  “A9.” he said “Everything’s okay with your message it will go out tonight no pr
oblem.”

  “Good, nice one Muzz.” I said and headed in the direction of A wing.

  The only tricky bit was going to be getting past the A wing office. Since the caning of Woolfe the screws were bound to be a lot tougher on who was going on and off their wing. When I walked onto A wing and made my way to the entrance it all seemed fairly quiet, not what I wanted really. I hung around for a few moments waiting to see what developed.

  There was a bit of a commotion behind me, coming from outside. I turned around to see a group of about a dozen cons. They were in high spirits and judging by the banter and the ball made out of parcel tape and an old prison pillow I guessed they had been playing football. Our little football match from a few days earlier had obviously started a craze. I took my moment and as they got level with me I started walking with them and passed the wing office entrance with them.

  I was on the far side of the door and tried to blend in with the group as much as possible. It worked a treat and a few moments later was heading down the corridor to Woolfe's cell. When I got there it was locked, as expected. I pulled the metal observation flap back to have a look inside the cell and get an idea of the layout. Next I got down on my knees and after a quick look around to make sure it was clear I took the two wraps out of my pocket.

  There was about a half inch gap between the bottom of the door and the floor, as with all the cell doors. I took the first wrap and lined it up under the gap. With the best finger flick I could manage I pinged in into the room. I jumped up to inspect my shot and searched around the cell trying to see it and eventually noticed it just under the edge of the bed, a perfect shot. I did the same again with the next wrap and this one went further to the left, not such a good shot I thought. I eventually spotted it in a corner at one end of the bed, it was actually a perfect shot.

  Just then the doors at the end of the corridor opened and one of the wing screws walked in. He spotted me straight away.

  “You.” he shouted, pointing at me. “Here, now.” motioning to the floor in front of him.

  I strolled over to him trying to look as carefree as possible.

  “What’s your name?” He bawled at me.

  “London.” I answered.

  “London.” He repeated. “What do you think you are doing on my wing?” He stood waiting for me to reply.

  “I was looking for Davidson.” I answered. “I wanted to ask him about some work we have been doing over at the computer centre.”

  “Don’t give me that London.” He screamed at me, “Get off this wing now and don’t ever think about coming back again or you’ll be in front of the Governor.” He stood staring at me.

  “Do I make myself clear?” He bawled at me.

  “Yes sir.” I answered.

  “Well get your arse off my wing then” He shouted. I didn’t hang around and quickly made my exit, back to my own wing.

  Five minutes later I was sitting in front of Muzzleflash again back in the dining room. He was smoking a roll up as usual, exhaling large wafts of smoke above his head.

  “So what’s the plan?” He finally asked.

  “Well.” I started, “I am going to make my exit first thing tomorrow.”

  Muzzleflash just nodded

  “I’ve planted the stuff in Woolfe’s cell and now I just need a whisper to get to the screws on A wing to search his cell.”

  “Not a problem.” Muzzleflash cut in, “That’s as good as done, Woolfe has got plenty of enemies waiting to get their own back.”

  “Nice one Muzz.” I replied. “Have you got any idea when he might be back on the wing?”

  Muzzleflash shook his head.

  “Could be any time, depends when the hospital doctor discharges him.”

  “Ok then.” I answered, thinking out aloud. “I should really just carry on as planned then.”

  “Makes sense.” Muzzleflash added, “He might not turn up until the end of the day. If he turns up first thing though how does that affect your plans?”

  “Depends.” I answered. “If he gets delayed by the screws I will be fine. Yeah, I should just carry on as planned. Tomorrow morning I’m out of here.”

  “It’s strange.” Muzzleflash reflected. “I’ve never known a jail breaker before.”

  “That beating in the showers wasn’t just a revenge thing was it?” He asked.

  “No, it was purely business” I replied “I needed him out of the way for a while and it was my only option. I did get some satisfaction out of it though.”

  Muzzleflash nodded wistfully though a cloud of cigarette smoke.

  “I like to enjoy my work.” I smiled.

  “Good luck London.” Muzzleflash said after a while “It won’t be the same without you here. I hope not to see you soon.” He said smiling at me.

  “I hope it’s a long time before we meet again.” I answered.

  TWENTY EIGHT

  It was a damp morning as I made my way to the computer room. It was quite fresh, the chill breeze made me shiver, or was that the anticipation of what was going to happen on this day. I stood outside, waiting by the gate that would let me into the compound where the computer centre was situated. After waiting for about ten minutes a screw finally turned up to open up the gate.

  “Shit the bed this morning.” He laughed at me as he unlocked the gate.

  “You’re really funny.” I replied, smiling at him.

  “Every morning when I see you I can’t help but laugh.” I continued. His face dropped immediately, he could dish it out but obviously not take it.

  I quickly made my way to the computer room and waited for Mike to open up. I was getting more and more excited. I had about an hours’ worth of work on the bar at the end of the tunnel and then I would be a free man. Now where was Mike. A few more cons turned up, Blackman and Davidson among them.

  “He’s late today.” Davidson observed after a few minutes. “That’s not like him.” He continued, which wasn’t what I wanted to hear.

  More delays now could seriously mess things up. I was starting to get anxious, where was he? I checked my Rolex, ten past nine. Mike had never opened up after nine in the mornings. I started to feel a bit panicky. The whole class were here by now waiting to get in and still no Mike. Eventually after what seemed an absolute age but was in reality five minutes Mike turned up and unlocked the door.

  The cons flooded into the room and took up their normal seats. I made it my job to get Mike a coffee, I wanted him seated in his room and stuck into one of his flight sim games as quickly as possible. Delays had to be kept to an absolute minimum.

  “Thanks London.” Mike said when I put the coffee down on his desk.

  He had been equally as eager to get sorted this morning but for other obvious reasons. The walk around the room to check on everyone’s progress didn’t take him long at all, much to my relief.

  “That will be the last time you do that for a while.” He commented as I was walking out of his office.

  No, I thought to myself, he knows about the tunnel.

  “What’s that then?” I asked, trying to stay as calm as possible

  “Making my coffee.” He answered.

  They’re going to ship me off to another prison, I thought or send me back to solitary. My nice little escape plan had been rumbled. I would never make it to the end of my sentence without losing my marbles.

  “Woolfe.” Mike continued. That’s it then I guess he had told them about the tunnel, rather than let me escape he’s told them all about it. He’s probably made some kind of deal.

  “He’s back today.” Mike continued.

  “Oh.” I answered. I was getting carried away, over reacting again. “When’s that?” I continued.

  “Not sure, sometime today.” He answered.

  “That’s good.” I lied and was desperately hoping that Muzzleflash had made sure the screws found out about the planted drugs in Woolfe’s cell.

  I needed that extra bit of time. I left Mike in his office to get himself sorted to pla
y his computer game. The other cons were getting settled down at their computers. It was time for me to get moving.

  I stepped out into the corridor and looked around, it was quiet as expected. I made my way quickly to the manhole cover and after a quick look around slid the lid back, lowered myself in and drew the lid back into place as quickly as possible. I checked my watch, two hours was about the maximum time I was going to get before anyone started to get suspicious and then about another half hour before the alarm was raised that I was nowhere to be found. I needed to be in the getaway car and well away from here by that time.

  I got down to the end of the tunnel as quickly as possible, ignoring the screeches and scurrying of the resident rats. Once at the end I quickly found the hidden hacksaw blade and got myself comfortable on the floor by the half sawn through bar and started to saw through the rest of it. The going was very slow with the worn out blade.

  I found myself having to stop frequently, it was hard to grip the blade tightly and had to keep the pressure on it to make it cut the hardened bar. After a good half an hour I was through, all I had to do now was bend it back out of the way and scramble through to the outside world. After heaving at the bar and trying to bend it out of the way for a few minutes it only budged half an inch from its original position.

  The bar was so short I couldn’t get enough leverage to bend it out of the way. After another five minutes I realised the only option was to cut through the other end of the bar. I took the blade and started cutting at the top part of the bar where it joined the square horizontal section of the gate. Again it was tough going and it didn’t seem like I was making any progress, I kept checking my watch every few minutes, the time was going by too quickly.

  The blade was becoming more and more blunt and I was forcing it harder against the bar. For forty five minutes I worked away, stopping only briefly every so often to stretch my hand. It was starting to bleed where I had been gripping the end of the blade so tightly.