Chapter 35 – Patience: Entering HMP Crossroads
⚠️ Spoiler Warning: This guide contains detailed spoilers for the entire novel. Proceed only if you've finished reading or are comfortable knowing the plot.
Summary
Patience narrates her journey from arrest to prison after being put on remand. Her one phone call goes unanswered. She is transported in a van with nine other women to HMP Crossroads – a prison where her mother used to work. An angry guard processes the new arrivals; Patience is reprimanded for speaking out of turn. She passes through scanners and is led by a guard named Taylor to a cell in a warehouse‑like building. The cell is tiny, with two beds: one plain, the other covered with a She‑Ra duvet and cuddly toys. Her cellmate, a young woman with curly blond hair, introduces herself as Liberty. Patience will undergo a prison interview the next morning.
Key Events
- Patience is arrested, charged, and placed on remand; her duty lawyer is inattentive.
- Her only phone call goes to a number nobody answers.
- The van arrives at HMP Crossroads, where Patience recalls her mother once worked.
- A rude male guard forces Patience to comply with fingerprinting and a photograph, mocking her impatience.
- After a strip search of another inmate, Patience is led to her cell by Guard Taylor.
- She meets her cellmate, Liberty, who occupies the bed decorated with toys and a colorful duvet.
- Patience is told she will receive a prison number and identity card the next day.
Character Development
- Patience Liddell – For the first time, Patience is fully powerless, stripped of her belongings and autonomy. Her defiant attitude (interrupting the guard) is quickly suppressed; she learns to “do as she’s told.” The fear and vulnerability she shows contrast with any earlier bravado. Her worry about her mother, Edith, and the dogs Dickens and Flora (from an earlier chapter) reveals a caring side.
- Liberty – Introduced only briefly, Liberty seems settled in her cell, surrounded by childlike comforts. Her name (“Liberty”) is ironic given the setting. She offers a polite greeting, suggesting she may be a key ally or foil.
- Guard Taylor – Professional and abrupt, she gives minimal information and locks Patience in without sympathy. Her role reinforces the institutional coldness.
- Unnamed prison officer – The short, fat man with white hair uses intimidation and sarcasm to establish dominance. He represents the dehumanising intake process.
Themes, Symbols, or Motifs
- Loss of control – Patience is processed like cargo: “I follow but stop on the bus steps when I see where we are.” Every step is dictated by guards and procedures.
- The prison as a warped home – Patience’s mother used to work at HMP Crossroads, so the place carries a personal sting. The cell’s She‑Ra duvet and cuddly toys symbolise an attempt to domesticate a hostile space.
- Communication breakdown – The unanswered phone call and the guards’ refusal to answer questions (“I suggest you don’t”) highlight Patience’s isolation and the failure of institutional communication.
- Identity stripped – She is reduced to a name on a list, given a cell number, and told she will receive a prison number tomorrow. The loss of her belongings (taken as evidence) deepens this erasure.
Why This Chapter Matters
Chapter 35 is a turning point: Patience moves from the legal system (arrest, court) to the physical reality of incarceration. HMP Crossroads is likely to be the primary setting for the remainder of her storyline. The chapter also introduces Liberty, a character who may become significant. Patience’s worry about her mother and her pets (Edith, Dickens) plants emotional stakes that will need resolution. The chapter’s title, “Patience,” is both the character’s name and a grim advice – she must endure the slow machinery of justice.
Study Questions and Answers
1. Why is Patience’s one phone call a “complete waste of time”? She dials the only number she knows by heart, but nobody answers. She does not specify who she called, leaving the identity ambiguous.
2. How does the male prison guard react when Patience speaks up during processing? He mocks her with sarcastic questions (“Are we taking up too much of your precious time?”) and orders her to “do as you’re told” and “keep your thoughts to yourself.” He uses humiliation to assert authority.
3. What does the description of Liberty’s bed suggest about her character? The bed has a She‑Ra duvet, colourful cushions, and cuddly toys, contrasting sharply with the prison’s gray uniformity. This decoration implies that Liberty is trying to maintain a sense of childhood comfort and individuality inside the system.