Narrator's POV
September 1989
The typical school day was going by very slowly for Andie Peterson. It was the beginning of the autumn season, so she was wearing a brown sweater and dark jeans. Her favorite rain coat was resting against her chair, and her dark brown hair was lazily styled for the cold school day. Her elbows were resting on top of her desk and she was mindlessly tuning out her teachers lecture to the class. The sky was gray and she was gazing out the window, watching two raindrops trickle down the glass slowly. She made a bet with herself to guess which would make it to the bottom of the window first.
She was interrupted from her mental gamble when her teacher called up everyone's attention. She looked up to the front of the class and took regard of the new kid who was standing beside her physics teacher.
Andie looked the guy up and down and instantly became infatuated with his look. He was wearing a thin gray tank top with a pair of loose blue jeans and a brown leather jacket over his arm. He ran his fingers through his messy brown hair to push it out of his face, which made almost every girl in the class lose their gum. He had a silver chain around his neck, as well as a black punk cuff on his wrist. It appeared to be that he wanted to be anywhere but that class.
Andie thought he instantly became one of the most attractive boys at school. He demeanor was careless, but in reality, he was doing a scan of every student in the classroom. Tom Hanson was undercover to investigate a series of drug dealings around Padua High School.
Tom was working alone because his partner, Mickey, was tying up some loose ends after their last bust. She was mostly working at the Metro Police Department Headquarters for the day, and she decided to stick around there and help with the paperwork side of things so Tom could focus solely on the school.
The teacher pushed her large square eyeglasses up her nose before she said, "class, this is Tommy McQuaid. He just transferred in from Taft, and it's his first day. I want y'all to make him feel welcome. All right?"
The class answered in slight murmurs and grunts. No one really cared that there was a new kid, even though it's odd to have new kids in the middle of the semester. All the girls couldn't take their eyes off of him, Andie included. Tom didn't bat an eye. Andie thought this made him even more desirable.
"Tommy, why don't you sit next to Andie, over there?" The teacher said, which made Andie twitch her head after she heard her name. It broke her from her trance, and Tom made eye contact with her. The power of jealously that the other girls in class felt after that announcement could have powered a lightbulb.
"Over there?" He asked while chomping his gum obnoxiously. He pointed over at Andie and she pretended to act busy by searching through her bag for a pencil. She felt her face grow warm and her leg started bouncing gently to try to release some of her nervous energy.
"Yes. You can be her partner for our assignment for today."
Andie's eyes peeked up at Tom as he slowly trudged down the aisle of tables and stopped at hers. He peered down at her and chomped his bright pink gum and he slumped down to the chair. Two students could fit at each table, and her usual partner was out sick that day.
"Hi," Andie said to him in a small voice. She wasn't quite sure what to say to him. His dark brown eyes met with Andie's sparkling eyes, and she felt herself melt towards him slightly.
"Hi, Andie," Tom said in a gruff voice that made her shiver.
"How do you like Padua so far?" She asked to try to make conversation.
"It's good," Tom said with a sniff. "Lotta squares around here."
"Depends on who you know," Andie chuckled softly.
"It's the whole reason my folks transferred me to this dump in the first place. To get clean, or whatever," Tom said with a gentle shake of his head. He had stayed up all night to achieve a withdrawal-look so he seemed more believable. He has never taken drugs, but he can pull an all-nighter and drink a ton of coffee to become jittery and be able to pull it off.
"They thought this was a step up from Taft?" Andie asked with a scoff. She fiddled with the yellow pencil in her hand and glanced at Tom. He seemed a little twitchy, and she thought that his drug issue explained the hollowness of his cheeks and the dark circles under his eyes, as well as his shakiness.
"Uh-huh. So, what do we do?" Tom asked lazily. He opened his mouth and squeezed his tired eyes shut as he let out a big yawn. He smacked his lips together and forced his eyes open. All he wanted was to get this assignment over with so he could go home and take a nap.
"Beats me," Andie shrugged just as the teacher was passing out packets for each student that they needed to fill out before the class ended.
"Man, my parents got me all messed up," Tom groaned and rubbed his hands over his face to try to wake himself up more. He promised himself that he would bring a thermos of coffee to school next time.
"Why?" Andie asked.
"They've been making me take drug tests every week," he chuckled emptily. "I tell ya, being sober ain't it."
Andie raised her eyebrows and said, "I'm sorry, that blows... no pun intended."
Tom gazed over at her and laughed as he laced his fingers behind his head. Andie looked away because she didn't want people to notice that she was giving the new kid any sort of special attention. She tried not to seem nervous, but she was. Tom side-eyed her and asked, "know anyone who sells? My old hook-up is back at Taft so I can't. And I think he just got busted."
Andie felt her mouth run dry, and she glanced over at Gerry McGreger who was sitting nearby.
There is a sort of initiation that the students partake in. Gerry's older brother is a chemistry prodigy, and he and his buddies created a drug that can't be detected on drug tests but it's highly addictive and very dangerous. The drugs are called Lenix. Gerry started a drug ring at Padua High and he decided to turn it into a game. He pulls an oblivious student into dealing for him, and the only way to get out is to initiate another student into dealing but by then, they are already hooked on the pills. They call it Tag. Gerry had done this since he was a freshman, and most recently has brought unsuspecting Andie into the mix. She is one of the newest dealers, but has been trapped on this merry-go-round for months. She has been desperate to find someone to take her place.
Gerry was listening in on their conversation. He discreetly shook his head at Andie, because he was never too careful about narcs. There was a rumor going around that undercover cops were sneaking into nearby schools, so he couldn't be too careful. He didn't want to ruin his chances of going to Brown University. But, he was too hungry for the power and the money to even think about stopping.
Andie decided to stay clueless and shook her head, "no. This is a pretty clean school."
Tom chuckled and closed his eyes slowly. He knew that was an obvious lie. Announcements have been made at the school and letters have been sent home over the dangers of the drug so there was no way she wouldn't know about the drug issue at the school. He squinted over at her notebook and memorized her name that was written on the cover. Since she lied, he was going to keep a close eye on her.
Andie grabbed her pencil and the packet. She quickly jotted her name on the top, and began working on their daily assignment. Her eyes kept grazing over towards Tom, and he could feel her looking at him. When his eyes would meet hers, she would dart them back to her paper.
Tom had never understood why he would get these looks from girls in school. When he was truly in high school, he thought that girls never gave him the time of day. What he didn't know, was that none of them thought they would ever have a chance with him, despite how nice he was. He was too intimidating. Now, high school girls are more up front about what they want. Doug always says that he needs to embrace that aspect of it and get information through flirting, an approach that Booker uses, but Tom has always refused. Not only because they're minors, but also because of his girlfriend. Even for an assignment, he would never flirt with someone else. He loves her too much.
Tom wanted to see if he could squeeze a little more information out of her before the subject was shut down for good. He asked, "well, do you know anyone who sells? I mean, I'm getting pretty desperate here."
Andie studied Tom's face and thought that she could see the desperation in his eyes. He was new, so he wouldn't be aware of Tag, nor the drug. The bell rang, so Andie broke their eye contact as she stood up and grabbed her backpack. She turned to Tom and said in a low voice, "if you need a little boost, go behind the dumpsters after school. There are no security cameras back there."
"A boost?" He asked and chomped his hardening gum.
"Yeah," she said and all of their classmates were grabbing their bags and heading out into the hallway to go to their next class.
Tom asked in a low voice, "you know someone who sells, don't you?"
Andie nodded and disappeared into the hallway before he could ask any other questions.
Tom exhaled slowly as he grabbed his own backpack and slung it over his shoulder. He planned to take the time during the lecture of his next class to write down everything he knew so far about Lenix and the students. He remembered Andie's name because he knew that she knew something and she may be able to help him later. He walked off into the sea of students, and had to find his next class. He wasn't in a hurry though, because Tommy McQuaid doesn't care if he's on time for class or not.
After school, Andie went out and snuck behind the dumpsters. She shoved her hands in her pockets and lifted her hood up over her head so the rain didn't ruin her hair. It wasn't raining that hard, but it was sprinkling and the air was humid. The rain pattered against her hood softly, and the coldness of the air nipped the tip of her nose. The stench from the garbage was making her nose burn, and a bit of the grime rubbed off onto the elbow of her coat.
Tom put on his brown leather jacket before venturing out into the drizzling rain. He circled the school a couple of times because the dumpsters are tucked away from view. When he approached the dumpster, he tried not to show his surprise when he saw that it was Andie. He was expecting someone else to be waiting for him. He thought that she knew about the drug deals, but wouldn't have guessed that she was one of them.
Andie smiled at Tom softly when she saw him. She focused on his face, because she found him so attractive. She almost felt guilty for doing what she was going to do, but she felt like she had no choice. This is how she was hooked into the game of Tag, so she was going to do to the same thing to Tom.
First, she offers him the position. Then, they make the transaction and it will get him hooked on the drug. When he comes crawling back to her, they usually take the job because then they would have an endless supply of drugs at their disposal. Then, she would be free from the ring.
Andie stood near Tom and asked, "you've done this before, right?"
"Yeah, I have," Tom said in a level voice. The rain continued to fall around them, and the unique, earthy smell of petrichor almost covered the stench from the dumpster.
"Have you ever thought about dealing?" She asked as she put her backpack down on the wet cement ground and opened the zipper of her bag.
"No. Why?"
"I've made enough money to pay for at least two years at the university," she said.
"That's a hefty amount of dough," Tom stated and chomped his gum.
She pushed past her books and papers until she found the big bag of drugs. She pulled it out and held it delicately in her hand. "Yeah, but I'm ready for my turn to be over."
"Your turn?"
"With Tag," she said.
Tom tilted his head slightly and asked, "what's Tag?"
Andie almost forgot that Tom was new for a second, because everyone in the school knows about Tag. Almost half of the students were dealers at one point. Most of them quit after it started getting too risky. Even though Andie has made a lot of money with this gig, she started hearing about the undercover cop rumors and panicked after some people were overdosing. She wanted to wash her hands entirely from the situation, and leave the game for good. Gerry said that she couldn't do that until she roped someone else in. That someone, was going to be Tom.
"Tag is what we call our ring," Andie explained vaguely. She didn't want to give Tom too much information and make him not want to join. If she was given all the information, she never would have joined herself.
"Have you ever had this?" Tom asked and pointed at the bag.
Andie nodded. "Yeah."
"Any good?"
Andie has indeed taken the drugs, but its infamous slow start caused her to nearly overdose. As luck would have it, her family took a road trip which was just enough time for Andie to kick the craving for the drug. She didn't have the chance to get addicted, because she came back and refused to take another pill.
"The best. It's made by some nerds over at Metro State University. But, I won't get high on my own supply. Just to warn you, it's got a slow start." She wiggled the bag of pills in her hand and said, "$200."
"That's steep."
"Keep in mind, this is illegal now."
"How many people are in your ring?" Tom asked nonchalantly as he fished the cash from his pocket.
"Just a few right now. But a lot of people have already had their turn."
Tom handed Andie the cash and traded it for the drugs. He asked, "their turn?"
"Yeah. They already did their dealing."
"How many do you estimate?"
"Oh, at least half the school. A lot have already graduated," Andie revealed. She didn't think twice about why Tom was asking so many questions, she just thought he was curious. She trusted him, mostly because she rightfully assumed that he was an addict. Another reason, was because of his good-looks. It's incredible what a pretty face is capable of to an impressionable teenager.
"Uh-huh," Tom grunted. He opened the bag and took a look inside. He examined the color, the texture, and the size and shape of the drugs before he determined that they were the drugs he was looking for.
Andie counted the cash to make sure it was all there. She squat back down to zip up her backpack, but Tom stopped her when he said, "Andie, you're under arrest for having possession and usage of a controlled substance, with the intent to distribute."
She looked up at him and chuckled in disbelief, "you're joking."
Tom pulled his badge out of his pocket and opened it in her face.
Andie's smile dropped as she looked up at Tom and muttered, "oh no."
"Oh no, is right," Tom sighed. He took out his handcuffs and opened them up. He was never content about arresting kids, but it was part of the job.
Andie didn't struggle as Tom turned her around and shackled the handcuffs behind her back. She bit her lips together and felt his fingers graze her skin as he made sure that the handcuffs were locked. Her anger towards him suddenly suppressed her infatuation with him. Luckily, most of the kids had left already so no one saw her get put into the back of his car. The entire drive was silent as they drove to the station.
______________________________
Andie was put into an interview room at Metro Police Headquarters and sat waiting for someone to come in and question her about everything. She had been given a piece of paper so she could write every name that she could remember of those involved in the selling and taking of these drugs. She didn't want to be a snitch, but she wasn't planning on taking the entire fall for it either. She wasn't even the mastermind, but they were treating her like she was.
Andie glanced over at the mirror on the wall, and saw her reflection looking back at her. She barely recognized the face looking back, she was so ashamed. She put her hands in her lap, and her reflection copied her movement. She has seen enough movies to know that on the other side of the mirror was a bundle of police officers, observing her through the window that she couldn't see through. And she knew that Tom was amongst them.
The door latch turned and it swung open. Captain Fuller walked into the room holding the case file in his hands. He looked at Andie, who was sitting calmly in the chair, and already had a list of questions in his head to ask her. It always shocks him that someone so young, beautiful, and with so much potential could fall into the life of crime.
Andie was pissed over the entire situation. She said, "I want to speak to Tom McQuaid."
"Miss Peterson, we—"
"I won't speak unless it's to Tom," she restated firmly.
Fuller audibly exhaled through his nose and whipped around and walked back out the door. The door closed behind him and he walked straight up to Tom. Tom was gnawing on his pinky nail, and looked up at Fuller with big eyes. He had heard everything. Fuller handed him the case file and said, "you know what to do."
Tom grabbed the file from Fuller's hands and walked right into the room. Andie didn't look in his direction until the door closed behind him.
Her eyes were wide as Tom started to make his way to sit across from her at the table. She asked, "what the hell, Tom? If that's your real name."
"My real name is Officer Tom Hanson, and I'm a cop," he said. Andie instantly noticed Tom's remarkable change in appearance. Going from a punk druggie to a respectable cop in a matter of minutes was baffling. She thought she was must be sitting across from a completely different guy. She immediately recognized his deep voice though, and his smokey eyes.
"Obviously."
"I was assigned to your school because we received word of a new drug that had been floating around other districts. Lenix. You've heard of it. And you know that it is incredibly dangerous to the user, and gets them high without being shown on a drug test."
Andie bit the inside of her raw cheek and looked down at her hands. "Look, I've never taken the drug if that's what you're asking." She lied because there was no way that Tom would know about the one time she did take the drug, because not even her closest friends knew.
"Right, because you won't get high on your own supply."
She squinted at him. "What are you talking about?"
"You're a smart girl. I think you know exactly what I'm saying."
Her jaw slacked at his accusation, which he had the right to make. She closed her eyes briefly in annoyance when she remembered that Tom did ask her if she's taken it, and she said yes. However, Andie was desperate to keep herself innocent. "Everyone is going to think I'm a drug dealer because of you."
"Tomato, tomato."
"No, tomato, drug dealer. I swear, I'm not—I—"
"Andie, that's what they all say," Tom interrupted. "Look, this is black and white and clear as crystal. You sold me the drugs and I busted you. Now, you're paying the piper. This is how it works."
Andie felt the hot fury burning in her eyes. Her jaw trembled as she tried to think of what to say that could save her ass, but Tom had caught on to her lies. She decided to finally tell the truth.
"I was forced into that drug ring. Do you think I wanted to be dealing drugs?" Andie asked and put her hand on her chest for emphasis. "Gerry McGreger from class, he's the one who press-ganged me into this sick little game of his. It's his brother who makes the drugs. You have to believe me."
Tom tossed his pen on the table and leaned forward to rest his elbows on the surface. He opened his mouth and narrowed his eyebrows down as he licked the inside of his cheek. If she wasn't in trouble, Andie would have swooned over him. Then he asked, "why should I trust you? Because you've already lied to me."
Andie exhaled softly and calmed down enough to say, "I know I haven't given you a reason to trust me, but please trust me now."
Tom leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. He decided to believe her, but needed the proof. He knew that Mickey was on the other side of the door with Fuller and a few other cops listening in on the interview, so he called out, "Officer Gregg."
The door opened and Mickey Gregg stepped in. Andie noticed her young appearance as well, a trait that she shared with Tom. Her outfit consisted of a simple white boots, a lacy off-white button up shirt, and brown flared corduroy pants to accommodate for the chilly Evergreen State weather, and her silky brown hair was pushed up away from her rosy face. Mickey held a copy of the case file in her hand because she was trying to catch herself up on the case as she was waiting on the other side of the door.
Tom said, "Andie claims to be an accomplice. Can you find out everything you can about Gerry McGreger and his brother?" Tom looked back at Andie and asked, "what's his brother's name?"
"Lenny," Andie disclosed. He named the drug, Lenix, after himself.
"Lenny," Tom repeated up at Mickey. Andie was almost distracted by his sharp jawline that she could see vividly when he was hanging his head back, gazing up at his partner dotingly. Andie saw the ardent look in his eyes that told her that he had the hots for his coworker. Andie's a teenager, she's practically trained to pick up on that sort of stuff.
Mickey smiled back at Tom with a similar expression. She said, "sure thing."
"Thanks," Tom said and Mickey left the room. She went off to create a sting operation to get Gerry to sell her drugs so they could prove Andie's claim. If she's right, her sentence will be significantly reduced.
"She seems nice," Andie muttered while she was chewing at her thumb nail anxiously. She had never been so nervous in her life, she could barely focus on anything else.
Tom looked at Andie and sighed softly. She was the last person at that school he would have thought that would have been apart of this drug ring, but it taught him to always expect the unexpected.
"Since I'm not at the top of this chain, I can go home, right?" Andie asked. She really didn't want this situation to be on her permanent record.
Tom looked at Andie with kind eyes but said firmly, "Andie, you're going to go to Metropolis County Jail. We've already called your parents."
"Why? I just gave you some information to help you catch everyone," she stated and pointed at the paper.
"We didn't make a deal. You did that willingly. You confessed to me about the thousands of dollars you made in drug dealing. You were in possession of illegal substances with intent to distribute, and you admitted to taking some of the drugs yourself."
"But that's not fair. I was tricked!"
"I'm sorry, but that's the law," Tom said. He gathered his papers and left the room. He was replaced with a larger man in a police uniform who put Andie in handcuffs again and read her her rights as she was formally arrested and taken to the jail.
Tom walked out and went straight to the chapel. His mind was elsewhere during the drive, and he couldn't get Andie's words out of his head. Since it was after school, most of the officers from all the teams were hustling around, trying to finish their work so they could go home for the day.
Tom saw Mickey standing at her desk, leaning forward slightly to shuffle her papers together. She was striking and stole the focus of every room she walked into. He traced up her body with his eyes, for she usually dominates his thoughts, but he couldn't stop thinking about how he ruined a promising students life in one afternoon. He stuck his tongue between his molars and gently gnawed on the muscle in thought.
Mickey noticed him out of the corner of her eye and she said, "Gerry literally dropped his bag and the drugs practically rolled out of it. He didn't even try to sweet talk us. As soon as Doug asked him one question, he snapped like a twig and blabbed about everything."
Tom didn't say anything. He heard her, and he was listening, but he was too befuddled to respond. Mickey noticed that Tom was distracted and she looked at him. She stood up straight with the papers in her hands and she asked, "hey, are you okay?"
Tom brought his eyes up to her face and rested his tongue back into rightful place in his mouth.
"It's just not fair. She was looped into that mess."
Mickey knew that he was talking about Andie, and she was empathetic toward Tom's emotions. He feels things so hard, and he is a very emotional guy. It's one of the traits she loved most about him. Since their romantic relationship was kept a secret from their friends and coworkers, there wasn't much that they could do to show one another affection while at work. Mickey put her hand on his shoulder and rubbed her thumb up and down thoughtfully as she said, "I know. It sucks."
"What happened to Gerry?" Tom asked.
"Doug took him in. Ioki is on his way to Metro State with a warrant for Lenny's arrest as we speak."
"Good. That's good," Tom said.
Mickey frowned softly. She didn't like seeing Tom so wrapped up in cases like this. He knows how serious busting these kids are, and he despises incarcerating them when they're so young. They still have so much life to live, and spending their best years behind bars and treating them like animals only makes them worse. Mickey could see how upset he was so she suggested, "why don't you be there for her when she gets out? She'll need a lot of help."
"I don't think she will trust me much after what I put her though," Tom sighed, but he didn't think it was that bad of an idea.
Mickey shrugged, "you'll never know. It happened to me."
Tom's eyebrows came together in confusion. "What?" He asked as he spun around, following Mickey as she walked around him. She responded with a little smirk in his direction and headed to the door.
Tom chuckled softly. "I hate it when you go but love it when you walk away."
Mickey looked back at him over her shoulder and let out a laugh. Listening to her silvery laugh created an instant smile on Tom's face. Her ethereal nature made Tom feel so fortunate that she was his, and he was hers. Her curly hair bounced around her shoulders until she headed down the stairs and was out of his view.
There was still so much about Mickey's past that Tom doesn't know about yet. She only brings it up if the topic is related to it, but only rarely. He knows how it feels to have something you don't want to talk about, so he's never rushed her. But, he loves finding new things out about her every day. He also loves slow burn mysteries, and can't wait to solve the mystery of Mickey one day.
______________________________
Andie was taken in for finger printing, and her mug shot was taken. Then, she was sent to the shower area where she was hosed down like a dog. This was to ensure that she didn't have lice, then she was put into a room with just her and the Correctional Officer.
Officer Jenson was wearing latex gloves. She gestured toward the other side of the room and asked Andie to stand there. When she did, Jenson ordered, "state your name."
"Andrea Peterson," Andie said with a wobbly voice.
"Before we get started, are you sure I'm not going to find anything in or on you?"
"No," Andie promised. She knew what was coming, and was not looking forward to it.
"Introducing contraband into the jail is a whole other charge."
"I don't have anything."
"All right."
"I wouldn't do that."
"Okay. So, you're gonna take your clothes off one piece at a time. You're gonna hand it to me, don't throw it at me. Okay? We're gonna get you in and out of here. Start with your sweater."
"But I didn't do anything," Andie whined slightly.
Jenson waited for a moment before she waved her hand and said, "come on."
Andie knew that there was nothing she could do to get out of this mess. She made her bed, and now she must lie in it. She slipped her arm out of the sweater and pulled it over her head and handed it to Jenson. She thanked her, and quickly searched through the fabric before tossing it into a nearby bin. "Pants."
Andie kicked off her shoes then released the button of her jeans and shimmied them off. She accidentally took off her sock while she was slipping the leg off, but figured that she was going to need to take off her socks anyway. She took off the other and handed them all to Jenson.
Jenson took the clothes and throughly searched through every pocket and every square inch of the fabric. When she was done, she tossed them into the bin as well. The cold air was bringing goosebumps to Andie's bare legs, and she hoped that this was enough so she could cover up again and be able to leave.
"The bra."
"You have to take my bra too?" Andie's eyebrows rose. She didn't even think that getting completely naked in front of a stranger was legal.
"Yes, I have to take your bra," Jenson stated firmly.
Andie couldn't argue with the officer. She rolled her eyes up to the ceiling so she didn't have to look at Jenson as she reached behind her back and quickly unclasped the band. She let the straps slip off her arms and she reached over to hand it to the officer.
"This sucks," Andie muttered. She crossed her arms over her chest in an attempt to cover herself a little. She was so angry, she felt tears prickle in her eyes and she sniffed hard.
The officer sighed as she checked the padding in the bra and responded, "I know, it's humiliating."
Jenson has worked for the Metro Police Department for many years. She has had to go through strip down searches of almost every inmate at the jail, so nothing phased her. But, this was all new to Andie. Andie felt humiliated, cold, and afraid. She was pissed at Tom, and she just wanted to go home and hope that this was all just a bad dream.
"Now, the panties," Jenson said. She was indifferent about it, because this was just part of the job.
"I can't even wear my own underwear?" Andie asked.
"We will give you panties."
Andie hooked her thumbs around the band but hesitated. Jenson got annoyed quickly and she ordered, "take them off."
Andie took her underwear off and handed it to Jenson. She just had to give it a quick glance before she added it to the pile. "All right. Face me. Arms up."
Andie did as she was instructed, and she felt her chest trembling. This was horrible. She had never felt so humiliated and embarrassed in her life.
"Boobs up."
"What?"
"Hold them up."
Andie grabbed ahold of her breasts and lifted them as much as the skin would stretch. This was because of how many times weapons and drugs have been smuggled into jails because women hide them under their breast tissue.
Jenson then continued to search every crevice of Andie's body. She looked behind her ears, in her ears, looked between her fingers and her toes, and make her shake her hair out. With her gloved hand, she ordered Angie to open her mouth so she could side her finger around Andie's gums, felt around her cheeks, and around her tongue.
"Now, turn around." When Andie turned around, Jenson continued, "spread your legs."
Andie began spreading her legs apart.
"Farther."
"I'm trying."
"Farther. Good. You're gonna bend over just at the waist, use your hands to spread your buttcheeks and cough as hard as you can."
"You've got to be kidding me," Andie said under her breath. She did as she was told, spreading her cheeks like a curtain, and gave a half-assed cough. Now this was the most humiliating thing she's ever had to do.
Jenson had to bend down slightly to get a good look to make sure that Andie wasn't bringing drugs into the jail through her anus. "Harder. Cough harder. I want to see that flower pucker."
Andie gave three hardy coughs and finally Jenson said, "all right. Grab that jumpsuit."
Andie crossed her arms over her chest to try to protect the last bit of dignity she had left and stood up straight. She felt completely mortified. She found the orange jumpsuit over on the other side of the room and started to put her legs through.
Jenson escorted her out of the room when she was ready, and showed her to her new home. Cell Block #3.
November 1989
A couple months later, Andie was wearing the iconic orange jump suit in jail when she was called for having a visitor. She trudged lazily to the phones, where she saw her arresting officer sitting on the other side of the glass.
Tom wanted her to know that he was going to be there for her when she got out of prison. He felt that she was his responsibility, and Mickey offered to help out as well. He wanted to wait a little to make sure she cooled down enough to be willing to accept him as a visitor.
She glared at Tom as she sat down. He gave her a soft smile, which she did not return. They picked up the phones at the same time and she pressed the receiver to her ear without moving her messy brown hair. "What do you want?"
"To talk. Listen, I know that you were roped into that scheme. But that doesn't excuse what you did. You sold the illegal drugs to your classmates—your friends. Eleven of them have overdosed, three died and six of them are in comas because of it, all in the past year. One had his plug pulled last week."
Andie sniffed angrily and said through her teeth, "you don't have to remind me."
"Look, I just wanted you to know that I will be by your side when you get out. I want to help rehabilitate you and be there to help you get back on your feet."
Andie looked down at her hand as she truly listened to Tom's words. She looked him in the eye and asked, "really?"
"Really. Both me and Officer Gregg want to help you. But I need you to prove to us that you're willing to work for a better life when you're on the outside. Got it?"
"Okay," Andie nodded. She studied his face, and could feel it in her bones that he was telling the truth. She could see it in his kind eyes.
"That means being on your best behavior, going to classes to further your education, and staying out of trouble. You might be able to get out early on good behavior and get an appeal. I sent some commissary money for you."
Andie finally smiled at him. "Thank you. I will, I promise."
"Okay, great. Be good, and I'll visit again soon."
"Please do," Andie said. Tom smiled kindly at her and they both hung up their receivers.
Andie got up and was escorted back to her cell while Tom sat on the stool and drummed his fingers against his knee. When he was ready to go, he slapped his knee on his way up and walked back to the front desk of the jail. He signed out, and left feeling better about her situation. He felt that a weight was lifted off his shoulders that he had been carrying around for months. He was prepared to keep his promise and be there for her when she gets out.
Tom's visit gave Andie hope. Hope that this wasn't the end of her life. She can still get her education, and leave the world of drugs behind her. She couldn't wait to do her time and get back to the outside, a better person than she was before. Knowing that someone was waiting for her out there, made her hopeful.
Only six more years to go.