PRESENT DAY
Caris and Carol walked hand in hand through the basement corridor that the security men had led them through. There were two men in front, and two men behind, and their uniforms bore the same logo with a river and the face of a jungle cat, but it was clearer now. The river was red, and the face of the jungle cat was actually a lion with wings, like a griffin.
The corridor was lit with two strips on either side of the walkway, and what looked like an aquarium on either side. Carol held Caris’ hand tightly as they kept going down this lengthy walk, and the kind of aquatic life they got to see changed as they got further.
Once they reached the wall at the end, Carol’s heart began to beat much faster as she whispered to Caris, “Looks like this is our last moment together.” But then the two men in front stopped and stepped to the side, and the two men behind did the same. Then one of the ones in front took out a remote from his pocket and hit a button, which revealed a boiling lava stream right below Caris and Carol. The only thing keeping them from falling was a transparent trapdoor. Right before either of them could think of jumping, all four men trained their guns on them.
Caris turned Carol to himself and looked her square in the eyes. “If this is how we go out, then we do it our way.” Before she could respond, he swarmed her lips with his, and she responded, falling into the oblivion with him as the man with the remote said, “Enjoy your debauchery in hell, you lecherers!” Then he clicked the button and the two of them fell, still deeply kissing each other, until…
“AAAARGH!”
“What the hell, Carol?”
Carol sat up and looked around. She really had fallen, but it was on the floor of the room she’d been in with Caris. There was no dungeon and no lava; just a wooden floor and Caris looking down at her from his spot in the couch.
“For a person with no morals or spirituality, you really do get some extremely vivid dreams.”
“Goddamn. I really thought we were dead.”
“I can buy that. Particularly since you declared that we should go out on our own terms.”
Carol looked up at him and lifted her hands as she said, “In the dream, it was you who said that.”
Caris leaned over and lifted her back into his arms. “It’s the only way we know.”
He lowered his head to kiss her on her forehead, but them she redirected and gave him a deep, long smooch. “There’s my baby.”
Caris smiled at her and he was about to kiss her again when they heard a creaking sound. They paused for a second but then the sound continued, and it was coming from the front door.
Just as they got up, the door opened, and they heard multiple footsteps. Before they could run into the bedroom, eight men entered one by one, all with their automatic rifles at the ready. Caris stood in front of a frightened Carol, but the men didn’t seem to even acknowledge that the two of them were there.
Two men went into the room, two into the kitchen, two into the bathroom, and two remained with Caris and Carol. Once they were satisfied, all eight men came together and nodded to each other, and then seven of them stepped out. The remaining one gestured to Caris to take a seat, and he and Carol obliged.
Then they heard another set of footsteps, but these were more like heels than boots. The person finally emerged, and it was a woman.
“Hello Mr. and Mrs. Benton. I’m here on behalf of a client who would very much like to see you, and we are under specific instructions not to harm you. Either you come with us of your own free will, or we’ll forcibly take you.”
****
SIXTY YEARS AGO
“You mongrel of a boy. You defy me once again? You will spend another month in here, and if you defy me again, it will be six!”
Cassius’ body landed on the ice-cold floor as the door to the dungeon was slammed shut. He’d been able to lay low for two months since the last time, but then one of the boys in his room had gotten sick and he’d prayed for healing for the boy. Just as the doctors were getting to the dormitory, the boy was fully healed. He thought this would be fine, seeing as Reverend Dr. Tumi was a pioneer in the healing ministry as well, but that was far from the case.
He’d been accused of inspiring the other boys to “believe in heresy.” For his troubles, he’d gotten multiple whippings and once again found himself in the dungeon.
With tears in his eyes, he began to recite Psalms 23.
“…my cup runneth over. Surely, goodness and mercy shall follow me. All the days of my life. I will dwell in the house of the Lord. Forever. And ever.”
“Amen.”
Cassius looked up and saw Aurelius holding a small bag.
“Bored again, brother?”
“Not this time. I anticipated your visit once I heard of what you did for that boy. I knew the old farts would not let you get away with an actual display of the power of God, so I rounded up a few supplies for you.”
Cassius gave him a weak smile. “Thank you, Aurelius. Though I am not sure how you keep getting in and out of this place, I am grateful for your help.”
Aurelius patted him on the shoulder as he sat beside him. “Cassius, some secrets must remain that way. Although, this time around, I have another reason to help you.”
Aurelius opened the bag and took out what looked like a bottle of gin, a cloth, and something that looked like a stick. He soaked part of the cloth with the gin and then gave Cassius the stick-looking item.
“Bite into that.”
Cassius looked at him in confusion.
“Trust me. Bite into it.”
Cassius did as he was told and bit into the item. It turned out to be spongy and inedible. Aurelius raised the back of Cassius’ shirt to expose the wounds, although the back of the shirt was already in tatters from the whips. He looked at Cassius to make sure he’d bitten into the spongy stick.
“This is going to hurt.”
He began to tap the cloth to the wounds, which almost had Cassius screaming like a baby. The sponge stick kept him from opening his mouth, but the sounds of the pain still came through.
*****
PRESENT DAY
Inspector Kpodo walked into the lobby of the warden’s office at CyGate Prisons. The secretary immediately recognized him. “Welcome, inspector. He’s been expecting you. Please, come with me.”
They walked into the office, where the warden was waiting, along with two guards and a prisoner who looked badly beaten and was kneeling on the floor. The secretary walked out and closed the door and the warden turned to Kpodo.
“Inspector, I wish I had good news for you, but it appears that your man was murdered in his cell.”
Kpodo’s face fell. “Goosman is dead?”
“Yes. Based on our reports and the medical examiner’s estimate, it happened sometime within the last nine hours.”
“Nine hours. That would be right after lights out, wouldn’t it?”
“Indeed.”
“How was he murdered after lights out?”
The warden turned to the prisoner. “Talk.”
The prisoner flashed his teeth in response, which earned him a slap from one of the guards. Kpodo turned away, uncomfortable at the sight.
The warden walked to him as the other guard raised the prisoner’s head.
“Talk, or else you land in solitary for four months.”
The prisoner looked him dead in the eye. “Policeman’s son had no business being in a life he was never built for. A message had to be sent.”
The warden looked him in the eye. “And what message was that?”
The prisoner looked directly at Kpodo. “Fools don’t get an unlimited clock.”
With that, the prisoner closed his mouth and bit hard on something. Within seconds, he began to palpitate, and a foamy substance drooled out of his mouth as he fell lifeless to the ground.
The guards scrambled to try to save him but Kpodo already knew what had happened. He turned to the warden. “That was cyanide. Someone needed him to kill Goosman but they also didn’t want him to talk.”
“Any idea who you think it is?”
“I’m not sure, but whoever it is has very much gone to great lengths to screw with my investigation. And I’m going to find out why.”
The warden looked on as the guards radioed for medical support. “I hope you find them before they find you. I would hate to see you go out like that.”
Sigh, our dear inspector can’t seem to catch a break, can he? And who’s gone for our crazy couple?
