After spending 13 days in Brunswick Psychiatric Hospital, I was handed over to police custody and taken to Yapunk County Correctional Facility to be arraigned the following day. During transport, you are cuffed & shackled, then chained to another prisoner. Chaingang. The chain that connected the one other female prisoner and I was so long and heavy that we had to hoist it over our shoulders to move. The minute we were all on the bus, the C.O.s told us to shut the fuck up and not say a fucking word.

My female counterpart immediately asked me what I was in for—assault with a deadly vehicle. I think. What about you? I was moving four keys of coke and two pounds of meth from the Florida keys on my husband’s boat. Her voice was like 92 % dark chocolate. Deep & velvety, bitter at the end.`100 % Puerto Rican.

There was an exceptionally handsome black male prisoner across from us. P.R. looks over to him, tilts her head slightly, and lowers her voice a tad. Papi, what are you doing here? He bitch slapped a friend, the friend fell and cracked his head open. Murder. Then he continues, and if I was you two giggling over there about tripping a C.O. with that fucking long ass chain, I’d shut the fuck up, or you two will bunking with me on murders row. Oh, ok, Papi, we hear you. P.R. and I exchanged looks and remained silent.

After eleven days in Yapunk in quarantine, I was transferred to Riverhead; Processed in & then escorted to my new block. The C.O. unlocked the first set of bars; I waited in the galley as she opened the second. All the girls looked up. I dragged my mattress into the first open cell and heard her voice. P.R. I stick my head out of my cell. Dios mio, Mommy! When did you get here? She is one of mine, ladies. Be nice.